Vesper Black and the Prisoner of Azkaban
by Lady Loralye
Summary: Vesper Black, daughter of notorious mass murderer, Sirius Black, enters her third year at Hogwarts with her friends Harry, Ron, and Hermione. But when Black threatens to destroy everything she holds dear, can Vesper keep her friends safe? Or herself for that matter. Slight AU but mostly canon. OC. Complete.
1. Chapter 1 Introducing Vesper Black

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how many times I put it on my Christmas list.

**Chapter 1 Introducing Vesper Black**

Vesper wasn't like other thirteen year olds. Firstly, she loved school and was one of the best students in her year. Secondly, even though she loved school, she loved playing pranks on her professors even more. And thirdly, Vesper was a witch.

Vesper attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She went there with her three best friends: Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Harry Potter. Admittedly, their friendship had been a bit rough their first year and last year had nearly torn them apart. When the Chamber of Secrets had been opened, Vesper had been a prime suspect and after Hermione had been attacked, the minister had insisted on Vesper's immediate imprisonment. Thankfully Dumbledore had pulled a few strings and Vesper was allowed to stay at Hogwarts-in complete isolation of course.

The memory still made Vesper shudder. It was just another reason why she hated the ministry. When her father, Sirius Black, had been sent to Azkaban she was supposed to live with her next guardian, her godfather Remus Lupin. However the ministry deemed him unfit to take care of her due to his lycanthropy. Vesper had been sent to live at a muggle orphanage until her ninth birthday when she was finally able to live with her godfather.

Vesper loved Remus like a father but she knew that he could never replace her real father. Even though he was a convicted murderer Vesper still believed that he had to be good at some point in his life. It was this small revelation that kept Vesper from completely hating her father. Vesper had begged and pestered Remus until he finally broke down and for her thirteenth birthday two days ago had given her an old photo album of the Marauders from their time at school and after their graduation. Vesper had been flipping through the pages reading the inscription for each when she had reached a picture towards the back. It was a picture of a baby Harry and her father. Underneath the inscription said: _Harry, 3 weeks old, with his godfather, Sirius._

She had actually dropped the book in shock. Why hadn't anyone told her, why hadn't anyone told Harry? Ok well the answer to that was obvious, but still they both had a right to know! Vesper knew that Remus would be upset if he knew she found out about this, so Vesper kept her discovery to herself.

"Vesper, come down! It's time to go!"

And speaking of a certain godfather.

"Coming!" Vesper called. She closed the book that Hermione had sent for her birthday. Grabbing her cloak she ran down the stairs to the kitchen where Remus was waiting for her.

"Now are you sure you want to go?" Remus asked. He was constantly asking her if she wanted to go to Diagon Ally. Ever since her father's escape a little over a month ago, Vesper hadn't gone out anywhere.

"Yes, Remus, I'm sure. Now let's go!" she begged, pulling him by the arm towards the fireplace. Vesper grabbed a handful of floo power and yelled, "Diagon Ally!" With a whoosh Vesper felt herself fall into the Leaky Cauldron. Remus soon followed and they were on their way.

"How about I go get your books and you can wander around for a while?" Remus asked.

"That'd be great! Thank you, Remus," Vesper said, starting to walk away.

"Just be careful!" Remus called after her.

"I will!" she yelled back.

Vesper walked through the crowd of last minute shoppers. Everywhere she looked there were starring faces and pointed fingers. Whispers that were meant to be quiet were pounding in Vesper's ears-

"_That's his daughter!"_

"_Thirteen people with one curse!"_

"_I think she had something to do with it."_

"_Sirius Black!"_

"Vesper!"

Vesper looked up at the sound of her name being called. She had been unconsciously holding her hands to her ears trying to block out the whispers.

She looked up and saw her three best friends, Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Vesper smiled instantly and ran to hug her friends.

"I've missed you guys," she said. "How was France, Hermione?"

"Oh, it was wonderful!" Hermione exclaimed. "I learned loads! I was even able to add another two rolls of parchment to my History of Magic essay."

"Really? That's amazing, Hermione," Vesper said.

"Not really," Ron muttered in her ear. "She's upset that it's under ten rolls." Vesper stifled a laugh.

"Ronald!" Hermione scolded, slapping his arm.

"Hey, now," Harry said, smoothly cutting in between them. "Why don't we all go and get some ice cream."

"Great," Vesper said. "Let's go."

The four friends walked to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. Vesper pointedly ignored the stares and posters of her father's face in the store windows.

"So, how'd your holiday go, Harry? Dursleys treat you horrible again?" Vesper asked.

Harry sighed. "Well, during my month there I managed to blow up my aunt."

Vesper snorted and Ron sniggered into his hand. Hermione just "tut"ed.

"Honestly, you two! Harry could've been expelled."

That just made Vesper burst out laughing. "Hermione, it was an accident, right Harry?"

"Of course!" Harry said quickly.

"There you go," Vesper said. "It was accidental magic, it happens to all of us. I remember when I had just turned ten and I got a horrible hair cut. My godfather laughed at me and he went bald for a month."

They all laughed at that and sat down at a table.

"I'll go get us our usual," Hermione offered.

"So how was Egypt, Ron?" Vesper asked. "I saw your family in the _Daily Prophet_."

"It was amazing!" Ron exclaimed. "Lots of mummies and tombs. Fred and George tried to shut Percy in one but Mum caught them."

"Shame," Vesper sighed. She disliked the third Weasley brother almost as much as she did Snape. Well, almost.

"Here we are," Hermione said, placing down the bowls in front of them.

"And Scabbers is looking a bit peaky. I don't think he liked Egypt very much," Ron said digging into his ice cream. "And now Hermione's bought that orange monster."

"It's a cat, Ron!" Hermione said.

"Just watch, that beast has it out for Scabbers."

"So, are you guys spending the night at the Leaky Cauldron?" asked Vesper before a fight broke out.

"Yup," Harry said.

"Why don't you join us for dinner, Vesper?" Hermione asked.

"I'd love to!" said Vesper, standing up. "Just let me ask my godfather."

"Alright, meet us at Quality Quidditch Supplies," Ron called to her. "I want to see the Firebolt."

"Alright, I'll see you soon!" Vesper shouted.

If she knew her godfather-and she did-then he was still probably looking at books at Flourish and Blotts.

Sure enough, he was pouring over a book on Defense Against the Dark Arts when Vesper found him.

"Remus, can I ask you something?" she said.

He didn't say anything.

"Remus!" Vesper said, raising her voice slightly.

Nothing.

"MOONY!!!" Vesper shouted. Several heads turned to stare at her but she ignored them.

Remus had dropped his book in surprise and spun around to look at her.

"I told you not to call me that," he said in a slightly amused tone.

"Well I had to get your attention somehow," Vesper said innocently.

Remus rubbed his eyes while muttering a drabble of words that sounded like: _…Just like her father…_

Vesper chose to ignore this.

"So," said Remus. "What did you want?"

"Could I stay and have dinner with Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys at the Leaky Cauldron tonight?" Vesper asked.

"I suppose that would be acceptable," Remus said, nodding.

Vesper gave him a quick hug before running out of the store. "Thanks, Remus!"

It was settled-Vesper would stay for dinner.

**AN-So how'd you like it? The next chapter should be up sometime soon…I hope.**

**I LOVE reviews and they keep me writing. That being said…review or I will stop writing and you will never know the ending!!!!**

**Love Lora**


	2. Chapter 2 Overheard Conversation

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter what the voices in my head say.

**Chapter 2 Overheard Conversation**

The four friends spent the rest of the day wandering around Diagon Ally. Harry, Vesper, and Ron had stood staring at the display window of Quality Quidditch Supplies. Harry told Vesper that he was too afraid to ask for the price of a Firebolt. Vesper being Vesper, walked inside to ask. She came back five minutes later, her face very pale and her mouth hanging open.

As they entered the Leaky Cauldron they saw Mr. Weasley sitting at a table reading the Daily Prophet. As he set it down the face of Sirius Black greeted them.

"They still haven't caught him, then?" Harry asked.

"No," Mr. Weasley said, shaking his head. "The minister took everyone off their normal jobs to put our efforts towards finding him. But it won't be any of us that'll find him. It'll be the guards of Azkaban, mark my words."

Vesper shifted uncomfortably. She looked downwards, refusing to look at the photograph of her father.

The awkward silence was ended with the arrival of the rest of the Weasley family, minus the two oldest Weasley brothers.

Fred and George walked over to Vesper and slung their arms over her shoulders. Vesper had become very good friends with the twins, joking and pranking with them. They were quickly shooed away by Mrs. Weasley who enveloped Vesper in a bone crushing hug.

"Vesper, dear, it's wonderful to see you," she cooed.

"It's great to see you too, Mrs. Weasley," Vesper hugged back. Mrs. Weasley let go in time for Vesper to see Fred and George fawning over Harry, making fun of Percy. Mrs. Weasley started to scold them before they began to do the same to her. Vesper just sat back and watched.

Dinner was a wonderful occasion. Throughout all five courses there was laughter and happy chatter. But soon everyone began to head upstairs to their rooms to finish any last minute packing.

Vesper decided it was time to say goodbye to everyone. She didn't want Remus to worry over her.

Vesper headed upstairs towards Harry's room. The door was slightly ajar and Vesper knocked lightly. She heard Harry's "Come in" and so she did.

"Hey," she said, flopping down on the bed. "I'm gonna head home, so I came to say bye."

Harry walked over to her and Vesper sat up. He gave her a tight hug and said, "I'll miss you."

They released each other and Vesper rolled her eyes. "Harry, I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Harry said.

Just as Vesper turned to leave, they both heard shouts from down the hall.

"Sounds like Ron and Percy. Wanna go see what they're yelling about?" asked Vesper.

"Well…" Harry trailed off. Vesper sighed and grabbed his arm, dragging him to the room.

"What's wrong?" Harry said.

"My Head Boy badge is missing!" Percy shouted.

"I think I left Scabber's rat tonic down at the bar," Ron said. "I need to go get it."

"Oh no!" Percy screamed. "You aren't going anywhere until you've found my badge!"

"We'll go get it," Vesper offered. "I was just about to leave. I'll see you tomorrow Ron."

"See ya," Ron said with a wave.

Vesper and Harry made their way down the stairs. About halfway there, thought, they heard even more angry voices which they recognized as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.

"…makes no sense not to tell them. Harry has the right to know and Vesper as well. I've tried to tell Fudge, but he insists on treating Harry like a child and you know how he feels about Vesper. If Dumbledore hadn't intervened, she would be in Azkaban for sure."

"They are thirteen, Arthur, the truth would terrify them!" Mrs. Weasley cried. "Vesper feels guilty enough. For heaven's sake, he's happy not knowing!"

"I just want them to be on guard!" Mr. Weasley retorted. "Vesper is just like her father and so is Harry. When he ran away from home…think of what could have happened! He could have died!"

"But Harry is safe, especially at Hogwarts-"

"Molly, they say Sirius Black's mad, but he was obviously smart enough to escape from Azkaban. We have no clue where he is and it has been three weeks! The only thing we know is he's after-"

"Harry will be safe at Hogwarts," Mrs. Weasley insisted.

"We all thought Azkaban was safe. It won't be long until Black tries to break into Hogwarts."

"But no one's really sure that Black's after Harry-"

Vesper pulled away from the door, her eyes wide with shock. She got up to leave but Harry pulled her back down.

"They're talking again," he whispered.

"Molly, look. Fudge was at Azkaban the night Black escaped. The guards were telling him that Black's been talking in his sleep: 'He's at Hogwarts…' he wants Harry dead, Molly, you know that. He thinks this will bring You-Know-Who back to power. Black lost everything that night and he's had twelve years to brood on this."

Mrs. Weasley sighed. "Do what you must, Arthur. Just don't forget about Dumbledore. I honestly don't think anything would happen to either of them while he is there. I suppose he knows all this?"

"Of course he does. Had to ask him if the Azkaban guards could stand post outside the school. He wasn't happy, but he agreed."

"Why wouldn't he be happy?"

"Dumbledore isn't fond of them," Mr. Weasley said. "No one is. But when it comes to dealing with a wizard like Black they are unavoidable. It's late, Molly, we'd better go up…"

Vesper and Harry moved silently down the hallway to avoid detection. As they made their way to the main floor, Harry and Vesper saw both Fred and George hunched over something, trying to stifle their laughs.

"We took Percy's badge," Fred told them. "Made some improvements to it."

Vesper examined the badge. It now read _Bighead Boy_.

Vesper gave a small smile and she could tell that Harry's laugh was forced.

"Well, I'll, uh, see you tomorrow then," Vesper said. With this new information hanging over her head, it didn't feel right to her to talk to Harry. Her father was supposedly trying to kill him after all.

She grabbed a handful of powder and was engulfed in a green flame.

**AN-You'll recognize some of the dialogue from PoA chapter 4. I had to change some of it to fit for Vesper and because I felt lazy and didn't want to type out the whole thing soooo ya. Hope you liked it! Please review!!!**

**Love Lora**


	3. Chapter 3 Train Ride from Hell

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how awesome I am.

Chapter 3 Train Ride from Hell

Vesper woke up very early the next day. She had spent most of the night tossing and turning, replaying the conversation she and Harry had overheard in her head. It scared her to death. What if Black really did manage to break into the castle? And if he found out she was friends with Harry…

Vesper involuntarily shivered at the thought. She had been a pawn in someone else's scheme to get to Harry; she didn't want it to happen again. She glanced at the clock. It was a bit after five in the morning. Vesper knew she wouldn't be able to fall asleep again. She got up out of her warm, cozy bed and got dressed in some jeans and a t-shirt.

Going down the stairs and entering the kitchen, Vesper realized that she was not the only one up. Remus was standing over the stove making some scrambled eggs.

"Full moon tonight?" Vesper asked. Remus was always jumpy near the full moon.

"Yes," Remus said. "And just so you know, Professor Snape will be preparing my potion while I am at school."

"Snape!" shouted Vesper. "He hates you! Why would he agree to make the potion without the motivation of poisoning you?"

Remus pinched the bridge of his nose. "Vesper we've been over and over this. Professor Snape isn't going to kill me. Dumbledore asked him to do this and even though he agreed begrudgingly, he's still making it. I trust Dumbledore and Dumbledore trusts Snape."

"I still think it's a bad idea," Vesper mumbled. She finished her breakfast and read until it was time to go to the station.

"I'm going to apparate," Remus said. "Will you be okay by yourself?"

"Yes, Remus, I'll be fine," said Vesper.

"No flying cars?"

"No fly cars, scout's honor."

"Good," Remus said with a weak smile. "I'll see you at the feast."

Vesper walked into the station grabbing a cart for herself. After loading everything on she went in search of platform 9 and ¾. She took the barrier at a run and immediately saw a cluster of seven red heads and one black haired. Vesper walked over towards the Weasleys acting like she hadn't heard Mr. and Mrs. Weasleys conversation last night.

Mrs. Weasley was giving everyone their goodbye hugs. Vesper heard her tell Harry to take care.

Pulling away from the hug, Mrs. Weasley noticed Vesper standing there.

"Oh, Vesper, dear," she said pulling Vesper into a tight hug. "Don't worry, Vesper, everything will be fine."

Vesper pulled away and placed a tight smile on her face. "Aren't I always, Mrs. Weasley?"

"Vesper, Harry," Mr. Weasley muttered. "May I talk to you privately?"

"Arthur," Mrs. Weasley said in a warning tone.

Mr. Weasley ignored her. He gestured towards an isolated nook and they followed.

"There's something I must tell you both before you return to school, though it mostly concerns you, Harry. You see, Sirius Black-"

"It's alright, Mr. Weasley," Harry cut in. "We already know."

"How did you know?"

"We, uh, kinda overheard you and Mrs. Weasley last night," Vesper said sheepishly.

"I would've preferred you not to have found out that way," said Mr. Weasley, looking anxious.

"Honestly, it's okay," Harry tried to reassure him.

"You must be very scared-"

"We're not," Vesper said. "_Really_," she added when Mr. Weasley looked at her doubtfully.

"Arthur," Mrs. Weasley cried. "The train!"

Vesper looked past Harry and saw that steam was beginning to blow from the top of the train; the gears were starting to move.

"They're coming!" Mr. Weasley shouted. "Now I know both of you to give me your word-"

"-that we'll be good children and stay in the castle?" said Vesper, dejectedly.

"Not entirely," Mr. Weasley said, looking around nervously. "Just swear to me that you won't go looking for him, will you."

Vesper just looked at him. "What?"

A shrill whistle blew as the train began to slowly move forward.

"Promise me that-"

"Mr. Weasley," Harry asked. "Why would I go looking for someone that wants to kill me?"

"Swear to me that whatever you may hear-"

"ARTHUR!" Mrs. Weasley yelled.

Harry and Vesper ran into their compartment as the train began to pick up speed. They all leaned out the window, waving goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley until they were out of sight.

"I need to talk to you guys in private," Harry muttered to Ron and Hermione.

"Ginny, go away!" Ron said.

"Oh, that's nice," Ginny huffed and she stalked off.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Vesper went looking for an empty compartment. They were all full except for one at the end of the train that held…Remus.

Vesper thought that when he said 'apparating' he meant straight to the Hogwarts' gates, not the platform. Remus was sleeping, finally. Vesper was always worried about him during his 'time of the month'.

"Come on," Hermione said.

"Who do you reckon he is?" Ron asked.

"Professor R.J. Lupin," Vesper said at once.

"How'd you know?"

"It's on his suitcase, Ronald," said Hermione. "Honestly, use your eyes."

Vesper gave an internal sigh of relief. She hadn't told any of her friends that Professor Lupin was actually her godfather. She had almost slipped up and they weren't not even at school yet.

As Harry began to tell Ron and Hermione what they had overheard, Vesper grabbed a book from her trunk, she really didn't want to listen to this story again.

When he had finished, Ron and Hermione were in different states of shock. Hermione was the first to speak.

"Sirius Black escaped to come after you? Oh, Harry…you'll have to be really careful. Don't go get into trouble, Harry-"

"Trouble usually finds _him,_ Hermione," Vesper finally spoke, not looking up from her book.

"Yeah, Hermione. How thick would Harry have to be, to go looking for a nutter who wants to kill him?" Ron took a shaky breath. "Look, no one knows how he got out; it's never been done before."

"But," Hermione said. "They'll catch him, won't they?"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure they will," said Vesper, rather curtly. She hoped they would get the hint and shut up about _him_. "Hogsmeade should be great this year."

"I've heard it's the only non-muggle settlement in Britain," Hermione piped in.

"I can't wait to see Honeydukes," said Ron. "It's a giant sweet shop. They've got loads of stuff."

Hermione looked over at Harry.

"It'll be nice to get out of school, won't it Harry?"

"I s'pose it would," Harry said in a gloomy voice. "You'll have to tell me all about it."

"What d'you mean?" Ron asked.

"I'm not allowed to go. The Dursleys' didn't sign the form."

"That's awful!" Vesper cried.

"We could always ask Fred and George if they know a passageway out."

"Ronald!" Hermione said sharply. "It isn't safe for Harry with Black on the loose!"

_Aaaaand back to Black again_, Vesper thought.

"But if we were with him-"

"Do you honestly think he'd mind killing all of us when he murdered a street full of people in broad daylight?"

Vesper tuned out the rest of their conversation. She was sick and tired of hearing about all the horrible things her father did.

It was a bit odd for Vesper to refer to Remus as Professor Lupin. It was odd to have him in her train compartment period. But it did have its advantages.

Malfoy and his goons, Crabbe and Goyle, stopped by their compartment sometime in the early afternoon.

"Look who it is," said Malfoy in his lazy drawl. "Potty, Black, and the Weasel. I heard your father got some gold this summer, Weasley. Did your mother die of shock?"

At that moment Remus stirred bringing Malfoy's attention to him.

"Who's that?" he asked.

"Oh, new teacher," Vesper replied innocently. "Now, what were you saying, Malfoy?"

He just glared at her and stalked off.

Rain came down, pounding on the roof of the train as the train continued its journey. The sky was nearly pitch black.

"I hope we get there soon," Ron complained. Just then, the train started to slow down.

"We can't possibly be there yet," Hermione said, some panic leaking into her voice.

Suddenly, the train lurched to a stop as the lanterns flickered out.

"What's going on?" Vesper asked. She looked down at the black lump that was Remus. How could he not have woken up with all this noise?

"Ouch!" gasped Hermione. "That was my foot, Ron."

"Do you think we broke down?" Harry asked.

"Dunno…"

The compartment door opened with a squeak. Someone tripped over Harry's legs with an, "Ouch!"

"Does anyone know what's going on?"

"Neville?" Vesper heard Harry ask.

"Yes it's me."

"Why don't you sit down?"

"No, Neville, I'm sitting here," Ron said.

"Oops, sorry."

"I'm going to talk with the driver," Hermione announced. She went to open the door and Vesper heard to things colliding.

"Who is that?"

"It's Ginny. Who's that?"

"It's me, Hermione."

"Can I sit down?"

"No, I'm here!" Harry said.

"Quiet!" came Remus' hoarse voice.

They all turned to look at him, but no one spoke a word. Remus conjured what appeared to be a flame in his hand. The first place he looked was at Vesper. She met his eyes and gave a small nod to indicate she was okay.

"Stay here," he said to them, though Vesper knew it was primarily directed to her. She had a nasty habit of letting her curiosity override her better judgment. But before Remus could reach the door, it slid open.

In the doorway was a figure floating in the air. It was draped in a large flowing black cloak. It reached its hand out and Vesper could see that its skin was nothing but scabs and decaying flesh. The creature let out a rattling breath that sent shivers down her spine.

An intense cold surrounded them then. Goosebumps appeared on Vesper's skin and her teeth began to chatter lightly. But it didn't stop there. The cold seemed to penetrate into place Vesper had never know. It felt like her very soul was frozen over.

And then, memories. Memories from the previous year began to resurface. Fudge screaming at the aurors to bind her, shouting false accusations in her face not listening to her, throwing her in isolation for weeks, threats of being shipped off to Azkaban… All her loneliness, all her despair came crashing down on her like a ton of bricks. Her breathing became shallow and labored. Bubbles of color popped in front of her eyes, her lungs burned, pleading for air. Vesper's vision began to blur before finally air ran into her lungs. A silvery light was coming from Remus' wand and the creature left.

Vesper gasped for air and began to cough. She doubled over, trying to gain control over her coughs. As she looked down on the floor she saw Harry, unconscious.

"Harry," she wheezed.

Everyone immediately started their attempts to wake him up. Hermione called encouragingly for him to open his eyes, while Ron resorted to slapping him.

Slowly, Harry opened his eyes. "What-what happened? What was that thing? Who screamed?"

"No one screamed," Ron told him.

A loud _snap_ made them all turn around. Remus was breaking some chocolate into pieces. Vesper mentally rolled her eyes, Remus was obsessed with chocolate.

"Eat it, it'll help" he told them. He gave Harry and herself rather large chunks.

Vesper immediately stuck some in her mouth while the others remained more hesitant. As soon as the chocolate touched her tongue, she started to feel much better, more pleasant and less clammy.

"What was that thing?" Harry asked.

"A dementor, one of the guards of Azkaban," Remus replied. He noticed they hadn't eaten any chocolate. "Eat," he insisted. "I have to go talk with the driver, excuse me."

When he left, Harry asked what happened. Ron explained that Harry started to have a fit and collapsed, while Professor Lupin did something that made the dementor go away. Apparently the dementor was searching the train for Sirius Black.

"It felt like I'd never be cheerful again," Neville said.

Ginny was curled in a ball, tears running down her face. Vesper couldn't blame her.

"Vesper, you look awful," Hermione said, handing her a small mirror. "Do you feel okay?"

Vesper stared at the mirror. Her skin was an unearthly shade of white, her black hair stuck to it from the cold sweat that covered her. Her sapphire eyes were red and bloodshot and tear stains ran down her cheeks. Hermione was right, she looked like hell.

Vesper handed the mirror back and said a shaky, "I'm fine," just as Remus walked back into the compartment.

"How are you feeling, Harry?" he asked. Harry mumbled that he was fine. Remus didn't ask how Vesper was, she knew he would call her to his office and ask her tomorrow.

Finally, after what seemed like eternity, the train entered the station. Vesper stood up on wobbly legs and exited the train. They found a carriage together and were off towards the school.

But upon exiting the carriage they ran into Malfoy.

"Oi, Potter? Is Longbottom telling the truth? You actually _fainted_?"

"Shove off, Malfoy!" Vesper shouted.

"Well, well, Black. Did you faint as well? I suspect the dementors were happy to see you around."

"Is there a problem?"

Vesper turned and saw Remus getting out of the carriage behind them. Vesper saw Malfoy looking him up and down, scrutinizing his shabby robes. "No-er-Professor," said Malfoy in a mocking tone. He smirked at Crabbe and Goyle and left.

The four friends entered the Entrance Hall but they weren't standing there for long before a shrill voice called out, "Potter, Black, Granger! I want to see you three!"

They all turned around to see Professor McGonagall striding towards them. "Move along, Weasley. You three, up to my office."

They had no choice but to do as she said. They pulled away from the crowd and followed her up the marble staircase and filed into her office. Once there she motioned for Harry, Hermione, and Vesper to sit.

"Now, Potter, Black, Professor Lupin sent a letter up to the castle to say you were ill on the train."

Before either of them could reply, Madame Pomfrey burst into the office. When she saw who it was though, all she said was, "Oh, it's you two again? I suppose you've been doing something dangerous?"

"No," Vesper said. "It was a dementor."

Madame Pomfrey then began to mutter to herself about 'Dementors in a school' and their effects on already 'Delicate people'.

"I'm not delicate!" Harry and Vesper shouted at the same time.

"Of course not," said Madame Pomfrey distractedly. "They'll need some chocolate at the very least."

"Professor Lupin already gave us some," Harry said.

"Well now," said Madame Pomfrey. "Do we finally have a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies?"

"Are you two sure you're alright?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Yes," they both insisted.

"Very well. Please wait outside while I have a quick word with Miss Granger about her schedule."

Vesper and Harry exited her office. They waited a few minutes before Hermione emerged and they made their way back to the Great Hall coming in just Professor Flitwick was carrying away a stool and the Sorting Hat.

"Oh, we've missed the Sorting," Hermione said softly. They quickly took their seats at the Gryffindor table. Vesper could feel the stares on her back. Would she ever have a year in which people didn't stare at her?

Professor Dumbledore stood up then and began to speak.

"Welcome!" said Dumbledore. To another year at Hogwarts! Now, I have a rather serious announcement, and I think it best to get it out of the way, before we become befuddled by our excellent feast."

He went on to say that the dementors would be staying outside the entrances to the school and he cautioned them all (and looked directly at Harry and Vesper) to not give them any reason to harm them.

Dumbledore also announced Remus as the new Defense teacher. Vesper looked down the table at Snape. He was glaring murderously at Remus. This didn't escape the notice of the others.

"Look at Snape," Ron hissed.

Dumbledore the concluded with the announcement of Hagrid as the new Care of Magical Creature's professor. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Vesper all joined in the applause.

"Well, I think that's everything of importance," said Dumbledore. "Let the feast begin!"

The golden plates and goblets were suddenly filled with food and drink. Vesper tried to engage in conversation and enjoy herself but she was unable to. It seemed that every time she turned around, someone was pointing at her, or every conversation somehow turned to Sirius Black.

Finally after what seemed like years to Vesper, all the plates were cleared. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Vesper all ran up to the staff table to congratulate Hagrid.

"Well done, Hagrid!" Vesper said, beaming. She and Hagrid had a special friendship. They had both been accused of opening the Chamber last year. But even before that they were friends, but they became very close last year.

"All down ter you four," Hagrid said, blowing his nose in the napkin. "Great man, Dumbledore. He came straight to me with the job offer…it's what I've always wanted…" He buried his face in the napkin and Professor McGonagall shooed them away.

They followed the rest of the Gryffindors to the portrait of the Fat Lady. Percy gave them the password (Fortuna Major) and they clambered into the common room. They said their goodnights to each other as Hermione and Vesper climbed the stairs to their dormitory. Each girl changed in silence.

As Vesper crawled into bed, she couldn't help but feel that even with all the stares and whispers, she was home.

AN-This is probably the longest chapter in the entire story. Ok, so there may be other chapters that will be this long, but don't get used to it. This chapter is almost 3x the size of the other two!

Did you like Vesper's dementor experience? There is a whole back story with the Chamber of Secrets. Once this is done I'll probably write the Chamber of Secrets story, because I have the whole story for that planned out already. But what do you guys think?

Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to my fabulous reviewers: **Dramaqueen54, S.A.M. Fonceca, and Twilightluver919-TonksandLupin. **

Oh, and if you want to know how I see Vesper, there is a link on my profile.

Please review!!!

Love Lora


	4. Chapter 4 Grim and Grimmer

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how cool the new steering wheel cover I got for Christmas is.

**Chapter 4 Grim and Grimmer**

Vesper had another restless sleep that night. Her mind would not shut up! She was finally able to fall asleep around four in the morning.

Vesper rolled over and looked at the clock. _Aw hell_, she thought. It was eight thirty! She flung the covers from her body and got dressed in a hurry. Vesper made it down to the Great Hall with only ten minutes before classes started. She looked around for Harry, Ron, and Hermione but couldn't find them anywhere. They must have left for class already, Vesper reasoned.

Professor McGonagall handed Vesper her schedule. She quickly scanned it to see which classes she had. She had Arithmancy first and then Transfigurations. Glancing at the watch on her wrist, Vesper saw that she only had five minutes to get to class. Looking between a pile of toast and her schedule, Vesper gave an exasperated sigh and left for class without any breakfast.

Vesper was beginning to regret that decision. Her stomach was rumbling loudly and she had been late to class anyway losing Gryffindor five points. She wasn't that concerned though, it was a frequent occurrence for her to be late to class.

Vesper sat in the back of the classroom and tried to pay attention. The teacher, Professor Vector her name was, was explaining exactly what Arithmancy is and what they would be studying that year. She suppressed a yawn. This wasn't anything new to her, she had read all about the subject over the summer. Instead, she spent the time thinking of a new prank she could play on the Slytherins. She would need Fred and George's help though…

The lesson ended with Professor Vector assigning them an essay due by next class. Vesper shoved her things into her bags and hurried off to Transfigurations. Transfigurations was Vesper's favorite subject by far. She entered the classroom and she flopped down next to Hermione.

As Professor McGonagall began the lesson on Animagi (something Vesper found very interesting), she felt like she was the only one paying attention-and that was a first. Even when Professor McGonagall transformed into a cat and back, no one batted an eye lash.

"Really, what is wrong with you today?" she asked the class. "Miss Black is the only one paying any attention-a first I may add." So she had noticed.

Everyone turned to look at Harry. Hermione raised her hand.

"Please, Professor, we've just come from our first Divination class."

"Ah," McGonagall said in a knowing voice. "So which unlucky student will be dying this year?"

"Me," Harry said plainly.

"Well then Potter, if you should die over the weekend, you will be excused from turning in the essay due next week."

Vesper snickered into her hand. Compared to Arithmancy, Divinations was a sack of potatoes.

As class finished, all four of them made their way down to the Great Hall for lunch.

"Oh, Ron, cheer up," Hermione said. "You heard what Professor McGonagall said."

"Harry," Ron asked, tentatively. "You haven't seen a great black dog anywhere, have you?"

"Yes, I have actually," Harry admitted. "I saw one when I left the Dursleys."

Ron gaped at him. Him and Hermione continued to argue about it until Vesper finally spoke up.

"Look, guys," Vesper said. "If Harry hasn't died yet then I really don't think he will any time soon."

Hermione just huffed. "Personally, I find Divinations to be very woolly, nothing but guesswork if you ask me."

Ron then proceeded to say that Hermione was just upset because Trelawney said she didn't have the right aura. Hermione slammed down her utensils and stalked off, Vesper going after her.

After calming Hermione down, they headed towards Care of Magical Creatures down at Hagrid's hut.

When the class was assembled, Hagrid led them into the forest. After walking for a bit, they came to a clearing with a large paddock in the center.

"Now," Hagrid began. "Yeh'll want ter open yer books-"

"And how do we do that, exactly?" came the voice of none other than Draco Malfoy.

Vesper looked around. When Hagrid had sent the book for her birthday, she had bound it with duct tape. She saw that others had used leather belts or spello-tape.

"Hasn'-hasn' anyone bin able ter open their books?" said Hagrid.

They all shook their heads no.

"Yeh've got ter stroke the spine o'course!" Hagrid said, like it was the most obvious thing. He reached for Hermione's book, took the rope off, and stroked the spine. The book shivered and fell open.

"Of course everyone!" Malfoy drawled. "We should've stroked it! Why didn't we think of that?"

Hagrid looked rather flustered. He didn't speak, he just went to go get the creature…whatever it was.

As he came back, Vesper could see him holding four leashes. Attached to each leash was a creature Vesper had only read about…a hippogriff.

"So," Hagrid said. "if yeh wan' ter come a bit closer-"

Vesper looked at Harry, Ron, and Hermione and they all cautiously approached the paddock.

"Now the firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud creatures. Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Insult one an it might be the last thing yeh do. Yeh wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move. Yeh walk toward him and bow. If he doesn' bow back, get away from him quick, 'cause those talons hurt.

"So-who wants ter go first?"

Vesper looked at the creature doubtfully. They didn't look like they wanted to make any new friends.

"I'll do it," Harry spoke up.

Harry walked towards the hippogriff which Hagrid introduced as Buckbeak. Very slowly, Harry bowed.

When it didn't bow back, Vesper got nervous. Harry began backing away when Buckbeak suddenly bowed back. Vesper clapped along with the rest of the class.

"Well done, Harry!" Hagrid cried, ecstatic. "I think he might let yeh ride him."

Vesper could see Harry's eyes widen and him desperately shaking his head no. Hagrid hoisted Harry up onto the hippogriff's back and slapped its hindquarters. The hippogriff expanded its wings and lifted up into the air. The class watched in awe as Harry flew around the paddock and landed again.

Everyone became more confident after Harry's attempt. Vesper walked up to a bright orange one. She barely bent her back when it bowed back to her. The hippogriff gladly trotted up towards her and began to nuzzle its beak to Vesper's face. She let out a small giggle; it acted more like a cat then a potentially dangerous creature. She really couldn't see them hurting anyone, they were so nice.

Just then a scream pierced the air. Vesper whirled around and saw Malfoy on the forest ground clutching his arm to his chest_. Thought too soon_, she thought. Hagrid scooped Malfoy in his arms and carried him to the Hospital Wing dismissing class early.

As they made their way up to the castle Vesper asked, "So what happened?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "That git Malfoy insulted Buckbeak and it scratched him in the arm."

"I do hope he's alright thought," Hermione said, worry leaking into her voice. "It was a really bad thing to happen on Hagrid's first class."

Vesper gave an un-ladylike snort. "Trust Malfoy to mess things up."

"I just hope they don't fire him," Harry said as they sat down for dinner. Looking up at the staff table, Vesper saw that Hagrid wasn't there. He was probably in his hut, sulking.

"Well," Ron said. "At least the first day back was interesting."

On their way back up to Gryffindor Tower, Vesper was silently planning on both a homework schedule. She wanted to finish that Arithmancy essay tonight and get a head start on the Transfigurations homework for tomorrow evening.

As Vesper worked diligently on her work at a table in the common room, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were constantly glancing out the window and looking at Hagrid's hut.

"There's a light on in his window," Vesper said, not looking up from her work. "If you want to go see him, I would do it now."

"I don't know…" said Hermione, unsure.

"I'm allowed to walk on the grounds, Hermione," Harry pointed out.

And so they packed their things and left. Vesper was quite glad that they were gone. It had been rather distracting with the constant noise they were making. The essay Vesper was working on was easy and she finished it quickly. As she glanced up from her work, she saw Fred and George about to walk up the stairs to the boy's dormitory.

"Oi, Fred, George!" she called. Both twins looked at her and Vesper jerked her head in the direction of a secluded corner of the common room.

"You called, madam?" Fred joked.

"Nothing short of demanding, isn't she?" George asked.

Vesper rolled her eyes. "I have a proposition for you two." Her voice was all business but the corners of her mouth started to turn upwards and her eyes teemed with mischief.

"How would you fancy turning Snape pink for a day?"

AN-I'm sorry this took so long to get out, but in all honesty, you have no one to blame but yourselves. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I LIVE for reviews. I didn't get ONE REVIEW on that last super long chapter and it made me lose my writing buzz. If you want sooner updates, then you had better start reviewing!!!

Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter

Love Lora


	5. Chapter 5 What She Fears Most

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how average my life is.

**Chapter 5 What She Fears Most**

The day that Vesper hated most had finally come. Thursday's double potions class with the Slytherins. Snape bore a personally grudge against both Harry and Vesper. Vesper figured it had something to do with her father-it always did.

It was also the day that Malfoy had decided to return to class.

Walking into the dungeon like a war hero halfway through class, came Malfoy. The Slytherins came to his immediate aid, taking his books, his bag. Snape simply told them to 'settle down'. If Vesper had walked in halfway through class, Gryffindor wouldn't have any points left and she'd have detention for a month.

Vesper was seated behind Harry and Ron next to Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan. Malfoy's drawling voice called out to Snape for help with his ingredients. "Weasley!" Snape barked. "Cut up Malfoy's roots for him."

Even from a distance, she could see Ron hacking away at the roots. Snape noticed this too. He ordered Ron to switch the destroyed roots for his own perfectly cut ones.

Vesper worked carefully for another few minutes before Snape began to rant on how wrong Neville's potion was. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Hermione attempting to help him out.

"Hey, Harry," Seamus said, "have you heard? The Daily Prophet says that Sirius Black was sighted!"

Vesper stiffened and stained to hear what Seamus had read. She also saw Malfoy listening in.

"Where?" Harry, Ron, and Vesper all asked at the same time.

"Not too far from here actually," he said. Harry and Vesper shared a quick look.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked. It was now plainly obvious that he was listening in. Dean and Seamus had gone back to work, but Vesper continued to listen.

Malfoy leaned in closer to Harry and Ron and she had to struggle to hear him. "Thinking of trying to catch Black single-handed, Potter?"

"Oh, yeah," Harry replied off handedly. "Definitely."

Malfoy leaned in even closer and Vesper couldn't hear what he said.

"Know _what,_ Malfoy?" Harry said.

Vesper leaned in closer, her potion all but forgotten. Was it just her, or did Malfoy's gaze flicker over towards her?

"Maybe you'd rather not risk your neck," he said. "Want to leave it to the dementors, do you? But if it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself."

Harry was about to say something when Snape called for them to clean ups so that they could watch Neville's potion's effects on his toad, Trevor. Vesper gazed into the cauldron and saw that Hermione had managed to help Neville turn his potion the correct acid green color.

They all waited in complete silence for the potion to take effect. And, finally, with a small pop, Trevor the toad changed into a tadpole.

Vesper began to cheer with the other Gryffindors until she saw Snape's glare.

"Five points from Gryffindor," he said. Vesper rolled her eyes, of course. "I told you not to help him, Miss Granger. And ten points from you, Black. Class dismissed."

Vesper's jaw dropped open. "What did I do, Professor?"

Snape didn't answer.

Both Ron and Vesper were fuming as they left the dungeon classroom and headed up towards the Great Hall for lunch.

"I didn't even do anything!"

"Five points from Gryffindor because the potion was alright!"

"I cannot wait to get him on Saturday!"

"Why didn't you lie, Hermione?" Ron asked. "You could've said Neville did it by himself!"

Vesper turned to look at Hermione only to realize she wasn't with them anymore. She looked back at Ron and Harry. "Where'd she go?" she asked.

"There," Harry said, pointing behind them. Hermione was running up the stairs tucking something that glinted gold down her robes.

"Sorry," she said, out of breath. "Left my book in the classroom."

Vesper could have sworn she saw Hermione shoving her book into her bag but she didn't push the matter. "Come on, let's go get some lunch," she said.

Vesper had been looking forwards to their first Defense Against the Dark Arts class. She had been kept busy with her homework and hadn't seen Remus all week except for meals.

She led them all towards desks in the front of the room. Remus loved Defense and Vesper knew that things would be more interesting in the front.

Remus hadn't arrived yet so the class (minus Vesper) pulled out quills, ink, and parchment. Vesper just sat and twirled her wand around in her fingers. She had a feeling that this wasn't going to be a normal class.

When Remus finally arrived, he gave the whole class a soft smile and winked to Vesper. Oh, he definitely had something planned.

"Books away," he said. "This will be a practical lesson today. You will only need your wands. Please follow me."

The class grabbed their wands and followed their Professor out the door. They proceeded down a corridor before they ran into Peeves. Remus quickly settled it though by the use of the "_Waddiwasi_" spell, something he had taught Vesper before she went to school for her first year.

The class continued walking until they came to a room. Remus ushered them inside. Vesper realized that they were in the staffroom. Vesper had always wanted to stay in this room and spy on teachers, but had never found the time.

Looking around she saw that the only teacher that occupied the room was none other than Snape. As Remus went to close the door, Snape said, "Leave the door open, Lupin. This is something I'd rather not witness." He sneered in Neville's direction. "I would also advise you not to entrust Longbottom with anything difficult, unless Miss Granger is whispering in his ear."

"Really?" Remus asked, looking at Neville. "I was actually hoping that Neville would help me out with a little demonstration. I'm sure he'll be up to the task."

Snape glared at Remus and swiftly left the room.

"Now that that's settled, let us continue," said Remus. He led them to a large wardrobe along one of the walls. It began to shudder and shake. "Nothing to worry about," he said lightly. "Now, is there anyone who can tell me what's in that wardrobe?"

Hermione was the first to raise her hand and Remus called on her. "It's a boggart, sir. Boggarts are shape-shifter and change into what they think will frighten us most."

"Correct," said Remus. "Now because a boggart assumes what each of us fears most, we as a class have a huge advantage over it. Have you spotted it, Harry?"

"Er-because it doesn't know what to turn into since there are so many of us," Harry said.

"Exactly!" Remus said. "The incantation used for a boggart is _riddikulus_; however, what really destroys a boggart is laughter. With this spell you are forcing the boggart to take the shape of something you find funny. So as a demonstration, Neville here," he said pulling Neville towards him "is going to help us. So, Neville, what do you fear most?"

Neville looked like he was going to be executed. He mumbled something that Vesper thought sounded like 'snake'.

"I'm sorry, Neville, didn't catch that," Remus said, acting oblivious to Neville's discomfort.

Very slowly, and almost inaudibly, Neville whispered, "Professor Snape."

Remus then asked about Neville's grandmother and what kind of clothes she wore. Vesper wasn't all that surprised when Remus announced that the boggart Snape would become dressed in Neville's grandmother's clothes. He then told the class to think about what they were afraid of.

Vesper thought. What did she fear the most? She didn't like fire and she didn't like Snape either, but they really weren't fears. She was always worried about her grades in school, maybe it was her failing a class? But what if it was about Remus and his monthly issue? Vesper could expose her godfather all because of some stupid boggart!

Around her, Vesper could hear some of the things her friends were afraid of. She heard Ron muttering, "Take its legs off." She knew that he was deathly afraid of spiders.

Suddenly Remus called, "Everyone ready?"

All around her were nodding heads. The only other person besides herself that she didn't see nodding was Harry. She caught his gaze and mouthed, "Me neither." Harry gave her a lopsided smile and pointed towards the back of the line so that they hopefully wouldn't have to go.

Together Harry and Vesper watched as Neville stuffed the boggart Snape into old lady clothes, Parvarti's became a mummy, Seamus defeated his banshee, and Dean's severed hand got stuck in a mouse trap. Ron was just finishing off his giant spider, when Vesper saw Harry head up to the front of the line. The legless spider body rolled lazily to a stop at his feet. He raised his wand but before he could utter a syllable, Remus ran in front of him. The boggart changed into the silvery orb that was the full moon. "_Riddikulus!_" Remus cried. "Neville, finish it off!"

As the boggart Snape appeared once again, Neville confidently shouted, "_Riddikulus!_" and the boggart burst into a small explosion of smoke and dust specks. Remus assigned due points to each of the participants as well as to Harry and Hermione and gave them next week's homework, but Vesper wasn't paying attention. Why had he stopped Harry? Vesper was determined to find out. She lagged behind and waited for the rest of the class to file out of the staff room and hoped her friends wouldn't notice her absence.

"Remus," she began gently.

He turned to look at her. "What's wrong, Vesper?"

"Nothing's really _wrong_," she said. "It's just that…well I was wondering-"

"Why I stopped Harry from facing the boggart," Remus finished for her. "Yes, I thought you would ask." He sat down in one of the large comfy chairs in the room and gesture for her to come to him. He pulled her onto his lap like he used to do when she was younger and had nightmares. Softly stroking her hair, Remus said, "You know I won't lie to you Vesper. I stopped Harry because I was worried that his boggart would turn into Lord Voldemort. You can imagine the panic and hysteria that would arise." Vesper nodded. A fully bodied Dark Lord was sure to fall under the category of '_Things that are most definitely not good'_.

"But what about you, huh?" Remus asked, turning her head to look at him. "I'd thought for sure that the fearless and reckless Vesper Black would be all for tackling a silly boggart. Care to explain?"

Vesper paused. "I suppose it was because I don't really what I'm afraid of," she said quietly. "There are so many things that haunt me and worry me, but I don't know if I'm truly afraid of them. School worries me, and I'm always worried about you."

"I really wish you wouldn't," Remus said.

She ignored him. "And I'm more worried about Harry now than I ever was, what with Black loose and being his godfather-"

"Wait, what?" interrupted Remus. "How did you find that out?"

Oh, crap, Vesper thought. "Umm, well you see it was in the photo album you gave me for my birthday and-I'm sorry."

"No, Vesper," said Remus. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I should have told you myself and sooner. I thought that you had enough on your plate and didn't want to add to it. But I forgot what a strong and independent young lady you are becoming. Does Harry know about this?"

Vesper shook her head no. "I thought it would hurt him more than me and I haven't had the heart to tell him."

"He shall find out when the time comes," said Remus.

Just then, Vesper's stomach let out a very loud growl. Remus chuckled.

"Dinnertime, I think," he said. Vesper got up off his lap and they walked together out of the staff room. "Oh, and I almost forgot," he said suddenly. "What's this I hear about you turning Professor Snape pink?"

Vesper abruptly stopped walking. "How did you know about that?"

Remus grinned. "I have my sources."

Vesper rolled her eyes and continued walking. "I swear, you gossip like an old woman."

"So it's true then?"

"Why would I tell a teacher about a prank that I may or may not do?"

"Touché," Remus said.

They parted ways as Vesper ran up the stairs to drop off her bag at Gryffindor Tower feeling much better then she had all year.

**A.N-Ok, please, please, please don't be angry with me. I am so upset at how long this chapter took me but I had exams and the pre-exam hysteria. Plus I've been preparing for a pageant (which is most likely getting cancelled due to the massive amounts of snow predicted), but anyway. Again I'm sorry for the long delay. Please x500,000 review!!!!!!!!!!**

**Love Lora**


	6. Chapter 6 Siriusly Screwed

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how awesome my dreams are.

**Chapter 6 Siriusly Screwed**

The rest of September flew by for Vesper. After her first little stumble with Arithmancy, it quickly became one of her favorite subjects. The only thing was that Hermione was in her Arithmancy class and Vesper was almost certain that she was supposed to have Divinations at the same time…

True to her word, Vesper did turn Snape pink for a whole day. She, Fred, and George regularly stopped by the hidden Hogwart's kitchens, so it was of no surprise to the house elves when they dropped by and asked them to slip a potion into Snape's goblet. And the next morning at breakfast with satisfaction, Vesper noticed Snape turn an almost sickly color of pink. Of course he was already on a rampage after the whole boggart fiasco was spread around the castle. All three of them had landed themselves a week of detention and 30 house points from each of them. All in all, Vesper thought it was a rather brilliant success.

As September turned into October, Vesper's excitement grew. October was the start of the Quidditch season. Vesper played Chaser on the team having replaced Alicia Spinnet last year. Her parents had forbidden her from playing until her grades improved and Vesper had wiped out all other competition in a landslide. So Vesper sat alongside Harry as they listened to Oliver Wood's pleading speech.

"This is our last chance-_my_ last chance-to with the Quidditch Cup," he said. "As you all know, I'll be leaving at the end of this year. I'll never have another shot at winning. Gryffindor hasn't won in seven years, but I know that this year is our year." Wood turned to face his teammates, a spark in his eyes.

"We've got three _superb_ Chasers," he said pointing to Vesper, Katie Bell, and Angelina Johnson.

"Two _unbeatable _Beaters."

"Please, Oliver, we're blushing!" Fred and George joked.

"And we have a Seeker who has _never lost us a match_!" Vesper turned her head to see Harry beaming at the comment.

"You're not half bad yourself, Oliver," Vesper said, smirking.

"Spanking good Keeper," said Fred.

"The point is," Oliver continued, "the Quidditch Cup should have been ours these last two years, what with Harry joining the team and Vesper playing just as well if not better than Alicia. But we haven't got it and this year's the last chance to get our names on the Cup…"

Wood's voice cracked and Vesper thought she saw his eyes watering.

"This is our year, Oliver," Vesper said with determination.

"We'll do it!" said Angelina.

"Definitely," Harry agreed.

With newly acquired confidence, the team began practices three times a week. Not even the ever growing cold and wet weather stopped them.

Harry and Vesper returned to the common room one evening after practice cold and sore. As they entered they saw that the entire room was abuzz with excitement.

"What's happened?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione.

"Hogsmeade weekend, Halloween," Ron said, pointing in the direction of the bulletin board.

"Excellent," said Vesper. "Now I can finally see Zonko's for myself and I won't have to send Fred and George for me."

"What are you talking about?" asked Ron.

"How do you think I got all my pranking supplies?" she said, smiling. "I told them what I wanted and they got it for me."

"Cost her a pretty Galleon though," George said, from behind her.

"You see," Fred continued, "we charge for delivery."

"Remind me why I like you two again," Vesper muttered. She turned to see Harry whose air of happiness seemed to be ebbing away. Hermione seemed to read his mind.

"Harry, I'm sure you'll be able to go next time," she said. "They're going to catch Black soon; he's already been sighted once."

"Black's not going to try anything in Hogsmeade," Ron said like it was the obvious thing in the world. "Go on and ask McGonagall, Harry."

"Yeah, yeah I think I will," Harry agreed.

Vesper looked at Hermione and both girls rolled their eyes. Hermione's cat Crookshanks jumped into her lap with a spider in its mouth.

Ron looked at the animal in disgust. "Does it have to eat that in front of us?"

Judging by the resentful glare Hermione shot at Ron, Vesper could smell an argument brewing. She quickly began to pack her books and headed for the girl's dormitories. She loved her friends, she really did, but sometimes they could be so loud! This was the very reason why Vesper had taught herself the silencing charm-so that she could do her homework in peace.

Sometime later Vesper heard the door opening. She knew instantly that it was Hermione. "What happened?" she asked without looking up.

Hermione sighed. "Poor, little Crookshanks went after Scabbers again and Ron started yelling at me."

"Ron's being a prat," she said, looking up at her friend. "He'll get over it. It might take a few days, but it'll pass over."

Hermione came and sat down on Vesper's bed. "What are you working on?" she asked.

Vesper grimaced. "Arithmancy essay."

"Oh, that," Hermione said. "I finished that yesterday. I don't think it was that difficult, you just have to think about it."

"Yeah, I suppose," Vesper said quietly, deep in concentration. But then Hermione's words registered in her brain. "Wait," she said. "I thought you took Divinations."

"I do," said Hermione, confused. "Why do you ask?"

"I just thought that Divinations and Arithmancy classes were at the same time."

Hermione's sharp intake of breath didn't go beyond Vesper's noticed. "No, they aren't," said Hermione in a slightly higher pitch than normal.

"Oh," was all she said. Vesper wasn't fooled for one second. Hermione was her best friend and she was a terrible liar. She was hiding something.

"Well, I gotta go and finish some homework. I just came up here to check on you, you left kinda suddenly."

"Didn't want to listen to you and Ron fight," Vesper replied. "No offense, of course," she added hastily.

Hermione smiled. "None taken. Night Vesper."

"Night," she answered.

Ron and Hermione's fight continued through to the next day, much to Harry and Vesper's chagrin. Herbology was a disaster and the end result was Vesper taking a trip to the Hospital Wing for de-flowerization.

Silently cursing Ron for his insolence, Vesper made her way to Transfigurations. It had taken Madame Pomfrey half an hour to remove all the blooms, so she wasn't sure how late she was for class.

As it turned out, Vesper had missed the whole lesson. When she reached the classroom door the bell rang and students began to fill the corridor. Vesper leaned against the wall and wait for Ron and Hermione-well, really just Hermione.

"Where's Harry?" she asked upon not seeing her black haired friend.

"Asking McGonagall," replied Hermione, disapproval in her tone.

Just then Harry walked out, his expression glum. "McGonagall said no. I can't go," he said.

"As she should have," Vesper said, walking ahead with Hermione. "You know I wish you could go, Harry, but I don't want to see you get yourself killed."

By Halloween morning tensions had risen between Hermione, Vesper, and Ron. Ron had even accused Vesper of losing her sense of fun and adventure. Vesper hadn't spoken to him for a week afterwards, but the words had hit home. True, she was the most unlikely voice of reason, but she wasn't stupid. Ron had mentioned the Sorcerer's Stone-a matter of stopping Voldemort. This was a trivial trip to a village. The wizarding world wouldn't be doomed if Harry didn't visit Honeydukes.

However these arguments didn't help clear Vesper's guilty conscience. Truly, she did feel bad that Harry wouldn't be able to enjoy Hogsmeade with her. It made her feel even worse when she saw Harry doing his best to act normally and smile. That was what made her promise-

"We'll bring you lots of sweets back from Honeydukes," Vesper said at breakfast.

"Yeah, loads," Ron agreed.

They walked out of the Entrance Hall outside to the grounds where Filch was checking off names.

"You coming, Vesper?" Hermione called after looking back and not seeing her friend behind her.

"Yeah," Vesper called back, "give me a second."

Vesper turned to Harry. She looked under her eyelashes. "I really am sorry," she said. Vesper reached up and placed a hand delicately on his shoulder. "It's for the best," she said, looking up, before turning and leaving.

"There you go," Ron said. "We got as much as we could carry."

It was evening and Hermione, Ron, and Vesper had finally returned from Hogsmeade. Vesper was honestly glad to be back at Hogwarts. She hadn't fully been able to enjoy herself all day-not without Harry by her side. It ate at her all day thinking of Harry all alone.

Harry thanked them for his gifts while Ron and Hermione talked about everything they had done that day.

"So what did you do, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"I had a cup of tea with Lupin," said Harry. "And then Snape walked in and gave him some potion."

"What potion was it?" Vesper asked, suddenly concerned for her godfather's secret.

"Who cares what it was," Ron interrupted. "The point is that _Lupin drank it!_"

"I think we better head down," Hermione interjected. "The feast is starting soon."

"Besides," Hermione whispered. "If Snape was trying to poison Lupin, he wouldn't have done it in front of Harry."

The Great Hall was in full Halloween mode. Giant pumpkins hung suspended from the ceiling and sweets and treats littered the tables. The Hogwarts ghosts floated around and provided the entertainment for the evening. Vesper's mood had improved significantly as she saw Harry's first genuine smile all day. All too soon though, the feast ended and the four friends made their way back up to the common room with the rest of the Gryffindors. However, as Vesper went to turn the corner, she ran right into a first year.

"What's going on? Why isn't anyone going in?" asked Ron.

"Let's go see," Vesper said. Maybe Fred and George had a Halloween trick planned that they hadn't told Vesper about.

Vesper had begun pushing her way through the crowd towards the front when she heard Percy's voice.

"Let me through, I'm Head Boy. Now what's the hold up? You all can't have forgotten the pass-"

Everything went dead silent except for Percy's cry of, "Get Professor Dumbledore, immediately!"

Dumbledore appeared just then and the crowd of students parted to allow him passage. Vesper finally saw what the problem was.

The Fat Lady was missing from her completely ruined canvas. Pieces of painting littered the ground like confetti.

Many teachers by then had arrived as did several of the ghosts. Dumbledore had just ordered a castle-wide search for the Fat Lady when Peeves cut in.

"No need to do that Professorhead," he said while floating on his back. "She's hiding in the landscape on the fourth floor, hiding in shame. Crying something dreadful," he added with a smirk as his eyes met Vesper's.

"Did she say who the attacker was?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

"Oh, yes, Your Headship, sir," said Peeves, floating down right in front of Vesper. "He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in without the password." Peeves flipped over again and spoke directly to Vesper from between his legs. "Nasty temper your father has, that Sirius Black."

**A.N-Dun dun dun! I have to admit that this chapter wasn't the best. The next chapter should be better. I'm really busy with school, dance and other stuff at the moment so the next update could take a little long. **

**Thanks for your support, please review!!!!**

**Love Lora**


	7. Chapter 7 Fight or Flight

*****Important AN at the bottom, PLEASE READ!*****

Disclaimer-Most character and plotlines belong to JK Rowling, not me no matter how many times I manage to get sick.

**Chapter 7 Fight or Flight**

Fight or flight is an instinct that all creatures have. It is a response to stress in order to prepare the animal for either a fight or to flee the scene. In this instance the 'animal' was young Vesper Black and she chose the latter response.

She ran.

Vesper turned and sprinted at the sound of her father's name. She vaguely heard someone call her name, but she didn't look back. Vesper had hoped that there was some part of her father that was good but tonight proved her different. The man she called father had broken into one of the safest places in Britain and could have potentially killed her best friend had his timing not been off.

Vesper continued to run down different corridors, up and down flights of stairs not really knowing nor caring where she was going. All she knew was that she had to get away. Everyone kept staring at her, eying her with suspicion until it all became too much. Somewhere in the distance she heard all the other students heading towards the Great Hall, she presumed.

She wondered where she should go. All Vesper wanted was to be alone, somewhere she could think and calm down. The Room of Requirement came to mind but it was on the seventh floor, too close to Dumbledore's office. Maybe she could hide in one of the old passageways. But could she risk getting caught by one of the teachers? Vesper finally just decided on wandering the halls all night.

It had been hours since the Fat Lady's portrait had been discovered. Hours that Vesper had run. Hours that she had been wandering the abandoned halls and avoiding detection.

Vesper stopped to pause and rest her feet. She stopped at a small alcove notched under a large window with a spectacular view of the grounds. The sky was clear and the full moon raised. Vesper wondered how Remus was. _It must be just as hard on him as it is with me_, Vesper thought. _After all, Remus was friends with him and spent time with him. Why did he have to do this? _thought Vesper, angrily_. He's ruined everything! My life, Harry's life…his actions follows me everywhere I go. He may be in Azkaban, but I have to face what he did and the damage he's done every day in Harry's face! _And with that, Vesper began to weep. Years of bottled up anger and resentment and hurt were poured into her tears.

The sound of footsteps soon came to Vesper's ears and she made quick to quiet herself. Wiping the tears from her cheeks, she peered to see two long shadows coming up the connecting corridor. Making sure not to be seen, Vesper crept down the hall. She ducked behind a suit of armor just as the two figures passed.

It was Snape and Dumbledore.

Vesper snuck behind them, far enough to not be seen but close enough to hear their conversation.

"I'm telling you, Albus, the only way Black would have gotten in would be through inside help."

"Severus, need I remind you of what moon is out tonight," Dumbledore questioned. "And Remus was present at the feast. There is no possible way for him to have let Black into the castle."

"And what of the younger Black?" Snape threw back. Vesper could almost hear the sneer as he said her name.

"Also present throughout the entire feast, though I will admit to being most concerned about her reaction-"

"They are plotting something!" Snape interrupted. "I've seen them together. You know what Lupin is capable of and Black is just like her father-"

"Severus, calm down. I stand by what I said. I do not believe that anyone in this castle, professor or student, let Sirius Black into the castle."

The voice gradually grew fainter and Vesper peeked her head around the suit of armor she was hiding behind to make sure they were really gone. They were. So Snape thought that she and Remus let Black into the castle? Vesper smirked, figures. But at least Dumbledore believed she's innocent. Vesper could only hope that the rest of the student body believed the same thing.

Vesper lived in a sea of constant whispers for the next several days. The castle buzzed about with rumors about how Black managed to get in. Surprisingly murmurs of Vesper's involvement quickly died down. However she wasn't free from constant reminders. Harry told her that McGonagall didn't want him practicing Quidditch anymore. Vesper was about to curse the old bat when Harry quickly said that a teacher would supervise the team practicing from now on.

Vesper was growing concerned about the upcoming match. Weather conditions were horrible at best and there weren't any signs of it letting up for Saturday. To make things even worse, the team wouldn't be playing Slytherin as expected. Oliver had been furious at the announcement as they had to change tactics completely. Vesper really wanted to march up to Malfoy and really do something to his arm to cry about, but Hermione had warned her of such behavior.

The day before the match was especially tense. Oliver kept popping up in between classes giving Harry and her advice. After the fourth time, Vesper was ready to put a silencing charm on him. She saw her escape when Wood was too busy talking to Harry and dashed off towards Defense Against the Dark Arts. Vesper didn't know what was worse: Snape in Potions, or Snape in DADA. The greasy git had somehow wormed his way into filling in for Remus. Vesper made it through the door just as the lesson was beginning.

"Five points from Gryffindor for lateness, Black," Snape sneered.

Vesper didn't even bother to retaliate. Vesper walked to her seat next to Hermione.

"Now that Miss Black has graced us with her presence," Snape began, glaring at Vesper, who glared right back. "I see that Professor Lupin left no record on where this class is. Most unprofessional, if I was running this class-"

The door burst open as Harry came dashing into the classroom. Vesper was grateful for the distraction. If Snape didn't shut his trap soon, Vesper would do something she later regretted.

"I'm sorry I was late, Professor Lupin, I-"

"Professor Lupin is not here," said Snape. "Ten points from Gryffindor. Now sit down, Potter, or it will be fifty. Now as I was saying before Potter interrupted…"

And so it continued on and on with Snape criticizing Remus. Vesper thought that there was no way she could possibly get any more livid until Snape grabbed a book and thumbed through it until he announced that they would be studying-

"Werewolves," Snape said, his eyes on Vesper, almost begging her to say something. But it was not Vesper who spoke up, it was Hermione.

"But, sir," she said. "We aren't due to start nocturnal creatures for weeks!"

"Miss Granger," said Snape, "I thought that I was the instructor of this class. Now turn to page 394!"

Reluctantly, the class pulled out their books.

"Now who can tell me the difference between a true wolf and a werewolf?" Snape asked, while ignoring Hermione's hand.

Vesper was silently fuming beside her best friend. How dare he purposefully try to unveil Remus' secret? It was nearly impossible for Remus to find work and here Snape was, trying to sabotage it!

"Miss Black," Snape's voice brought her out of her silent rampage. "Would you care to answer?"

Through clenched teeth, Vesper replied with a terse, "I'm sorry, sir, but I don't know."

Snape grew a twisted grin. "How disappointing."

"Please, sir," Hermione called out. "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several ways. The snout-"

"I do believe I did not ask you, Miss Granger," Snape said, coldly. "Five points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all."

"You asked a question and she answered it!" Ron shouted. "Why ask if you didn't want the answer?"

"Detention, Weasley," Snape said at once. "Now, I want an essay on the ways you recognize and kill werewolf, to be handed in on Monday. Class is dismissed. Stay behind for your detention, Weasley."

Vesper quickly packed her things, unsure if she could refrain from hexing Snape if she was in his presence any longer. She walked in between Harry and Hermione on the way back to the common room.

"Wonder what was up with Snape?" Harry wondered out loud. "He hasn't been like this before with any other teacher."

"I don't know," said Hermione. "I just hope that Professor Lupin gets better soon."

Ron ran up to them panting madly. "Do you know what that-"

"Ron!"

"-is making me do for detention? I've got to scrub the bedpans in the hospital wing without magic!"

"How will he survive?" Vesper whispered in Hermione's ear. Hermione just laughed, causing the boys to give them confused looks.

Vesper let out a huge yawn as she made her way towards the Great Hall for some breakfast. She chanced a glance at the enchanted ceiling. Heavy downpours of rain were battering the roof, the howling of the wind still audible from inside the castle.

"Great conditions, huh?" Vesper said.

Turning around and seeing Vesper, Harry rolled his eyes. "The best."

Vesper took a seat and began to nibble on some toast. Her teammates tried to get her to eat something more, but her stomach was in knots. Finally giving up, Vesper rose from the table and dashed to the locker rooms to get changed. Vesper grabbed her broom and headed out to the pitch. She mounted it with some difficulty. The mud was like a vacuum and made it hard for Vesper to pull her foot from the ground.

Vesper barely heard the starting whistle and make quick to grab the Quaffle. Katie got to it first. The high winds were slowing Vesper down and she tried frantically to move faster. Katie passed her the ball and Vesper made her shot for the left hoop, throwing it hard and slightly to the right so that by the time it reached the hoop, it would be smack in the middle. She watched in satisfaction as the ball soared through the goal post.

The game continued in the same fashion. The rain was steadily increasing, obscuring her vision. She had nearly mistaken a Bludger for the Quaffle before Angelina pointed out her mistake. Vesper had no idea how close Harry was to catching the Snitch, but she prayed he would find it soon. Her fingers were stiff and cold. All she wanted was for the game to stop.

Luck was on Vesper's side as Wood called for her to return to the ground.

"We're up by fifty," Wood told them. "But we can't keep playing in this weather."

Harry held up his glasses. "I can't see a thing with these, on or off. There's no way I'll be able to catch the Snitch."

Then, Hermione appeared next to Harry. "I had an idea. Give me your glasses, Harry." She grabbed them and said, 'Impervius!'

"Now they'll repel water," Hermione explained.

"Excellent!" said Wood. "Now let's get out there and play!"

Vesper mounted her broom and shot up into the air with a new found determination. They were playing Hufflepuff for crying out loud! Ignoring the growing numbness in her fingers, Vesper continued to throw and catch the Quaffle with as much precision as possible.

As a flash of lightning lit the sky, Vesper had time to catch a glance of Cedric Diggory, the Hufflepuff Seeker, flying as fast as his broom could carry him. He had seen the Snitch!

A blur of red and gold zoomed by her and she could only assume it was Harry.

"Vesper!"

Vesper looked up at the sound of her name. It was Angelina who called her. "Come on!" her teammate urged. "Maneuver number six!"

But Vesper had barely begun to fly into position when a familiar sense of cold and dread came over her. The entire audience had fallen silent with the arrival of the dementors. Then there was a scream, and Vesper watched on in horror as Harry fell from his broom.

Every member of the team was in the hospital wing-minus Wood-along with Ron and Hermione, waiting for Harry to open his eyes. They were all soaking wet and the team was covered in mud from head to toe. Vesper sat next to Harry's bed, ever vigilant for a sign that he would awaken.

Harry didn't awake for nearly an hour after he had been brought to the hospital wing.

"What happened?" he asked, a little confused.

"The dementors came to the pitch, and you fell off your broom," answered Hermione.

"No," Harry said impatiently. "I mean what happened to the match? Who won?"

Vesper rolled her eyes. "You fall from a height that rivals the Astronomy Tower, leaving us all thinking you were _dead_, and all you care about is the match."

"You would too," Harry pointed out. "So what happened?"

All the team members shared an uneasy look. It was finally George who broke the silence.

"We lost."

"Diggory got the Snitch," Fred continued. "Right after you had fallen. Wanted a rematch, but he caught it fair and square. Wood won't let him."

"And my broom?" pressed Harry.

"Well," Hermione started.

"It got blown into the Whomping Willow," Ron said, sheepishly. "And well you know how it doesn't like to be hit and…"

Ron reached behind him and pulled out a blanket hold the remaining ruins of Harry's broom.

**A.N-Well, there you have it. Again I am so sorry as to how long this took to get out. I was sick for nearly 3 weeks and then I got sick AGAIN! **

**I am really disappointed with the lack of reviews I'm getting. I have over 100 views for just 1 chapter and at least 10 people who've subscribed to this story. I know how annoying this it BUT I AM NOT UPDATING THIS STORY UNTIL I HAVE 15 REVIEWS! THAT MEANS 6 PEOPLE NEED TO TAKE 10 SECONDS FROM THEIR DAY TO SAY SOMETHING NICE IN A REVIEW. PLEASE! I AM LITERALLY ON MY KNEES BEGGING HERE!!!!!**

**So just to recap-until there are 15 reviews altogether, I will not update. So please, REVIEW!**

**Love Lora**


	8. Chapter 8 I Solemnly Swear

Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 8 I Solemnly Swear…**

The rest of Vesper's weekend was spent in the hospital wing. Harry was taking the lost of his broom very hard, and though he tried not to show it, Vesper could see the sadness in his eyes. She considered dipping into her Gringotts account and buying him a new one, but she knew he would never accept it. Harry had been putting up a good face for Ron and Hermione but Vesper knew him too well to know that he was hiding something. It wasn't until late Sunday evening after Ron and Hermione had gone back up to the common room that Vesper finally called him out on it.

"Okay, that's it," she said, standing up. "There's something you're not telling me."

Harry averted her gaze. "What are you talking about, Vesper?"

"Harry, I've been your best friend for three years, and I can tell there is something wrong, something you're not telling me," Vesper said with a huff.

"It's just…I saw the grim again," he said, mumbling.

"You're worried it could be a sign," said Vesper gently, sitting down on Harry's bed. She gathered the blanket in her hand and balled it up in her fist. She gave a short sigh and said, "Maybe it was just coincidence. But," she paused, "if it does appear again, maybe you should tell Dumbledore."

They met each other's eyes and smiled. "Thanks, Vesper," Harry said, placing his hand on her shoulder. "Knew I could count on you."

"Don't mention it," said Vesper. She got up from her position on the bed and walked over to the door. "See you in class tomorrow."

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The beginning of the week passed in a blur of torment thrown at Harry and Vesper being restrained from giving Malfoy 'an injury to prevent him from having any offspring' as she put it. But it was finally time for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Both Harry and Ron were afraid to walk into the classroom thinking it might be Snape teaching again. Vesper, knowing that Remus would be back, walked right into the classroom, soon followed by Hermione and the boys.

Immediately, angry outbursts of complaints were being thrown everywhere.

"He was only filling in!"

"-haven't covered them yet!"

"Two rolls of parchment!"

"-said we were behind-"

"-wouldn't listen!"

"TWO ROLLS OF PARCHMENT!"

"Alright, settle down, settle down," Remus said gently. "You don't have to do the essay."

"But I already finished!" came Hermione cry of indignation from beside Vesper.

Class continued on as normal and they moved onto…_safer_, topics for the professor at hand. Remus was in the middle of his lecture on Hinkypunks when a note fell in front of Vesper.

_Meet me up in our dormitory after class. I need to talk to you._

Vesper glanced over at Hermione, who gave a small nod.

Vesper leaned back in her seat. She had a feeling that she knew what Hermione wanted to talk about. After all, Snape had set up the essay to expose Remus; it would figure that Hermione-the smartest witch in the year-would be the one to work it out.

She spent the rest of class thinking of possible ways to diverge Hermione's newfound realization as something else. Vesper wasn't too confident in that approach, but she had to try. At the very least she had to make sure that Hermione kept her mouth shut.

The bell signaling the end of class came much too soon for Vesper's liking. She packed her things without looking at Hermione. She said a hasty goodbye to Harry and Ron and left for the dormitories without Hermione. She made it there in record time. Vesper began pacing the room, preparing excuses in her head. There was a loud snap and she stopped pacing. Hermione stood in front of the door and locked it.

Vesper turned around and sat on her bed. "So what did you want to talk about?" she asked.

"Well," began Hermione. She started playing with her robes. "I'm not quite sure how this will sound…it's about Professor Lupin."

Tactic one: Feign innocence. "What about him?"

"It's just that-well I think he…what I'm trying to say is-"

"Hermione just tell me!"

"I think Professor Lupin is a werewolf!" Hermione blurted.

Vesper's heart was racing but she managed to keep a cool exterior. "What makes you think that?"

"Look at the signs, Vesper," Hermione said, counting off on her fingers. "He's always ill at the full moon but he isn't at the hospital wing, his boggart was clearly a full moon, and I'm almost positive that the potion Harry saw him take was the Wolfsbane potion! Honestly Vesper, I can't believe you didn't figure it out, I mean, you're nearly top of every class!"

Well tactic one failed. On to tactic two: discredit.

"Hermione, I think you are being ridiculous," she said, getting off the bed slowly. "I think you're drawing conclusions that aren't there." She walked over to where Hermione was standing, gaping at her. "You're not making any sense at all."

"Fine!" Hermione snapped. "Then I'll just go tell Professor McGonagall and see what she thinks of my conclusions!"

Tactic two failed. She was in deep water here. The only thing left was tactic three:

Beg.

"Hermione, wait!" Vesper shouted, running towards the door, spreading her arms wide to block Hermione from leaving. "You can't tell!"

"Yes I can and I will," Hermione said. "They need to know-"

"They already know!" Vesper said over her. Hermione stared with wide eyes.

"They already know? But how could Dumbledore allow this? Werewolves are extremely dangerous!"

"He's fine, Hermione, trust me," said Vesper, lowering her arms. "Remus would never hurt anyone."

"Remus…you mean Professor Lupin?"

Oh crap. There was no way Vesper could cover that; the only thing to do was to tell the truth.

"I wanted to tell you guys, but I didn't want everyone to know," said Vesper softly. "Professor Lupin's my godfather."

"Really?" Hermione asked surprised. "Oh, Vesper, I'm so sorry!"

Vesper looked at her friend in confusion. "Why are you sorry? I'm the one who kept secrets from you."

"Yes, but if I hadn't talked to you first I would've blabbed and the whole school would know about…you know," she ended lamely.

"It's fine, Hermione, you didn't know," Vesper said. Suddenly an idea struck her. An incriminating smirk found its way onto her face. "But I know how you can make it up to me…"

Hermione, who was about to open the door, froze in mid step. She turned around slowly and glanced almost fearfully at Vesper. Any idea that put that expression on Vesper Black's face usually turned out bad for someone-and that someone was Hermione. "Wh-What is it?"

Vesper's smirk grew. "You can tell me how you got that Time-Turner."

Hermione's eyes grew wide and Vesper could see small beads of sweat beginning to pool on her forehead. "How-how did you know about my Time-Turner?" Hermione demanded in an unsteady voice.

"I didn't," said Vesper slightly. "You just told me."

Hermione's jaw actually dropped. "I just-…you didn't-…VESPER! No one's supposed to know!"

"Relax, Hermione," Vesper said. "I already had my suspicions that you were using a Time-Turner to get to class. You see, I went through your trunk-"

""You looked through my things?" asked an incredulous Hermione.

"-and found your Time-Turner, though I didn't know what it was at the time. After that I went researching in the library, but there wasn't anything useful there, so I used my own tactics," Vesper finished with a smile. "Don't worry, Hermione, your secret's safe with me."

"Yours is too, Vesper," Hermione said with all sincerity. "I swear that I won't tell anyone."

"Come on, let's head to dinner," said Vesper. "Harry and Ron are probably wondering where we got off to."

As Vesper and Hermione entered the Great Hall and moved towards the Gryffindor table they could hear Ron ask, "So what did Lupin want?"

Harry noticed the confusion in his friends faces. "After you two had run out Professor Lupin called me back. He just wanted to talk; ask me about the match." Harry paused. "He offered to teach me how to fight off the dementors."

"Really?" asked Hermione. "Oh, Harry that's wonderful that you're learning how to defend yourself."

"Did he say what spell he's going to teach you?" Vesper asked.

"Umm, no, but I think he's going to teach me the spell he used on the train," Harry said uncertainly.

"A Patronus charm," Vesper said. "Harry, would you mind terribly if I asked Professor Lupin to tag along? I think it'll be in my best interest if I learn as well."

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November quickly changed into December. A chill swept through the school causing extra layers to be used. Professor Flitwick with the help of Hagrid, decorated the Great Hall with its usual twelve Christmas trees. With Christmas rapidly approaching many students were excited about the upcoming trip to Hogsmeade. Harry appeared to be excited for them and he seemed to have fooled Ron and Hermione. Vesper, however, was not and she resigned herself to let him enjoy himself danger be damned. So that was why she hung back and waited for Hermione to be out of earshot before saying to Harry, "Go talk to Fred and George. If anyone has a way to get out of school undetected, then it's them."

"But what about-"

"I highly doubt Sirius Black will be walking around Hogsmeade in the middle of the day," Vesper interrupted. "Just…think about it." She flashed him a smile before running to catch up with Ron and Hermione.

"What was that about?" Ron asked.

"Oh, just saying how sorry I was that he couldn't come," Vesper lied swiftly. Both her friends seemed to buy her excuse and didn't push the matter. "Let's go to Honeydukes first," she suggested.

The three of them went off perusing the shelves full of different candy. They had wandered into the 'Unusual Tastes' section looking for something for Harry. Vesper was beginning to think that he wasn't going to show up after all.

Ron shoved a jar of Cockroach Clusters under Hermione's nose. "Do you think he'd like these?"

"Definitely not."

Vesper whipped around and smiled. There stood Harry tucking away a piece of worn old parchment. Was that what she thought it was…

"Harry!" squealed Hermione. "How did you get here?"

"Did you learn how to apparate?" asked Ron excitedly. Vesper suppressed the urge to roll her eyes.

"'Course I haven't," Harry said. He went on to explain how Fred and George gave him the Marauder's Map.

"Those prats!" exclaimed Vesper. "I've been their friend and prank assistant since first year and they haven't so much as let me _look_ at it!"

"Fred and George are my brothers and they never gave it to _me_!" Ron said, outraged.

"But Harry isn't going to keep it, are you Harry?" demanded Hermione. "You're going to turn it in to Professor McGonagall. What about Sirius Black? What if he got his hands on that map?"

"Hermione, can I talk to you," Vesper said tersely. She didn't wait for an answer and pulled Hermione to an empty corner of the store.

"Vesper, you know he could use it!"

"Yes, Hermione, but he doesn't need to," said Vesper. "My father was one of the creators of the map. He already knows all the secret passageways." She looked at her friend with pleading eyes. "Just drop it, Hermione, please."

Hermione sighed. "Fine, but if anything happens, I'm going to McGonagall."

"Fair enough," Vesper agreed.

The four exited Honeydukes and spent the next few hours showing Harry the joys and delights of Hogsmeade. While they were out it had begun to snow. Little flecks of white clung to Vesper's clothes and her exposed skin. She suggested to the rest of her pink faced friends that they head to the Three Broomsticks to warm up.

A rush of warm air greeted them as they stepped foot into the Three Broomsticks. Vesper welcomed the feeling as sensation returned to her numb nose and cheeks.

"I'll go get the drinks, shall I?" Ron offered. Vesper had a feeling that the redness of his cheeks wasn't from the cold.

"Happy Christmas, Harry!" Ron said cheerfully as he set their drinks down. Vesper took a small sip of her and let the warmth of the drink fill her entire body. She discreetly glanced over her mug and watched Harry take a large swig of his butterbeer. The happiness on his face made Vesper feel like this small bit of rule breaking to be justified.

The chill of a breeze swept through the pub. Vesper turned to see who the newcomers were and blanched at who she saw. Professors McGonagall and Flitwick entered alongside Hagrid and-to make things even worse-the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Vesper held a personal vendetta with the Minister after what had taken place last year. By the time she had recovered from her inner musings, Hermione and Ron had already managed to hide Harry as well as their table from sight. Madam Rosmerta quickly got their drinks and joined them.

"So, what brings you to Hogsmeade, Minister?" asked Rosmerta.

"Sirius Black, m'dear, what else?" Fudge answered grimly. "After what happened at Halloween…"

"I heard about that," Rosmerta said. "Do you think Black's still in the area?"

"I'm positive about it," said Fudge, resolve in his tone. "And I'm determined to catch him."

"Those dementors have searched the village a hundred times!" Madam Rosmerta whispered loudly. "They're scaring away all my business."

Fudge shook his head. "I don't like them either, but it's a necessary precaution. They are here to protect the village and the school. Black could've done worse on Halloween; we all know what he's capable of…"

"It's still hard to imagine…" Madam Rosmerta trailed off. "When he was here at school, he was such good lad. I would've never guessed what he was capable off."

"And that isn't the worst of it," Fudge added. "He did something else that not many people know of."

Vesper shifted uncomfortably in her seat, a fear growing inside of her. If it was worse than murdering thirteen people...she didn't know if she could take it.

"You say that you remember him at school, Rosmerta?" McGonagall asked quietly. "Do you remember who his best friend was?"

"Of course!" said Rosmerta. "Inseparable those two were. Oh, did they make me laugh. Quite the duo, Sirius Black and James Potter!"

A loud clunk made Vesper flinch. She could only assume that Harry had dropped his drink. Surely he would question her and ask whether she had known. And she had! What would Harry think of her?

"Precisely," McGonagall continued. "Both were very bright. If only they had used their smarts for studying and not troublemaking. Never had such a pair of miscreants-"

"I dunno," Hagrid chuckled. "I think little Vesper is giving her dad a run fer his money. And then put her together with the Weasley twins…"

"The two were brothers in every way except blood!" Flitwick chimed in.

"Potter trusted Black above all his other friends. Black was James' best man at his and Lily's wedding and was named Harry's godfather, although Harry has no idea. The idea would torment him."

Vesper felt Hermione's and Ron's gaze on her but her eyes remained constant on the table over. All her most guarded secrets were being spilled in a single conversation. Every effort that she had made in keeping this information unknown for Harry's sake and protection, wasted.

"Because Black was in league with You-Know-Who?" Rosmerta whispered.

"Worse," said Fudge bleakly. "When the Potters went into hiding from You-Know-Who, Dumbledore performed a Fidelius Charm. It's a spell that conceals a secret to a single living soul. This person, called a Secret-Keeper, would be the only person to know said secret unless they divulged the information themselves. You-Know-Who could've been sitting in front of the Potters' house and never know that they were there."

"And Black was the Potters' Secret-Keeper?" asked Rosmerta.

McGonagall nodded. "Naturally, though Dumbledore offered to be the Secret-Keeper himself. Dumbledore was suspicious that somebody close to the Potters' was feeding information to You-Know-You. But James insisted on using Black and not a week later-"

"Black betrayed them," breathed Madam Rosmerta.

"Filthy, stinkin', turncoat!" Hagrid yelled. "I met him, right outside the ruins o' the house an' comforted the murderin' traitor. Tried ter ask fer Harry ter take him home but I had orders from Dumbledore ter take him to his aunt an' uncle's." Hagrid took a swig from his drink. "Shoulda knew somethin' was up."

"But the Ministry of Magic caught him the next morning," a confused sounding Rosmerta asked.

"Ah, but it was not us that caught up with him, Rosmerta dear," Fudge said. "It was little Peter Pettigrew."

"That little fat boy that always followed after Sirius and James?" said Rosmerta.

"Pettigrew died a hero's death," said Fudge. "Eyewitnesses say how Pettigrew had cornered Black and started sobbing about James and Lily. He went for his wand, but Black was quicker. Next thing anyone knew there was an explosion and Pettigrew was dead. Nothing but a few fragments-largest part we ever found was his finger. And there Black was, a crater in the middle of the street and dead muggles everywhere. And he just stood there and laughed."

Fudge sighed. "After that he was taken into custody and brought to Azkaban."

"Is it true that he's mad, Minister?" Madam Rosmerta asked.

"I wish I could say the he was," Fudge said slowly. "I, however, don't believe that he is. I met him on my last inspection of Azkaban. Most prisoners go mad within a few months. But Black was eerily calm, almost like he was bored! He asked if I had finished with my newspaper, said he missed doing the crosswords. And he's one of the most heavily guarded. It's all very peculiar."

"Minister, if you are to be dining with the headmaster, I think we had better be off," Professor McGonagall said. The sound of chairs scrapping the floor could be heard and Vesper watched the parade of secret-spillers walk out of the pub. Vesper needed to fix this and fast.

"Harry?" she asked cautiously. She slipped off her chair and crouched under the table only to be met by emerald eyes that showed three emotions:

Shock.

Hurt.

Hatred.

**A.N-Gah! Please don't eat me! I'm so sorry about the wait! I had school stuff that I could prattle on about but I won't because it would take a really long time. Unfortunately, I'm going to be a bit (ok a lot) busy with exams, last minute projects, dance, and the states pageant. But the good news is that I know exactly how the next chapter's going to go which means an easier write.**

**I'd like to shout out to irockdoyou! Thanks for being so supportive!**

**Also, I am continuing with my five review rule. No new update until I get 5 reviews…so review!**

**Love Lora**


	9. Chapter 9 Paint it Black

**Disclaimer-J.K owns all except Vesper. SHE"S MINE!**

**Short A.N-I just want to thank everyone who had reviewed and faved and added this story to their alerts. YOU GUYS ROCK!**

**Chapter 9 Paint it Black**

Cold eyes met hers and Vesper couldn't help but shudder. These were not the eyes of her best friend. Harry had never looked at her with such disgust, even when he found out what her father was, even when she was accused of being the Heir of Slytherin, not even when they had found out that her father was after him! All the times they laughed together, every midnight adventure, each life and death situation they had come out of, meant nothing now. Nothing mattered except that she had lied. Vesper knew that he would never forgive her, not now. Not after he would ask the unavoidable question, and she would have to answer truthfully. The thought made Vesper sick to her stomach.

"Harry," came a soft voice from beside her. Hermione and Ron had joined her under the table and were looking at Harry with concern. Vesper noticed how neither she nor Ron was looking her in the eye.

Harry, however, was. He ignored Hermione's comment and instead asked Vesper in a deadly calm voice, "Did you know?"

"I-" Vesper paused, unsure how to continue. Yet Harry took her hesitation as confirmation. He made his way out from under the table and stalked off. Vesper desperately wanted to call out to him, to make him wait and listen, but calling attention to him would be very bad, when Harry wasn't even supposed to be there.

A gentle hand placed on her arm brought Vesper out of her reverie. She looked up with dejected eyes. Hermione was crouched down next to her, conflicting expressions overtaking her face. "Vesper," Hermione asked. "Did you know? About-" she stopped abruptly.

Tears threatened to fall and Vesper squeezed her eyes tight to force them to stop. With shame, she slowly nodded her head. "I knew about him being Harry's godfather and about him being friends with Harry's parents, but I never-I didn't-" Vesper chocked on a sob. She couldn't make herself say those words aloud; that her father was the reason why her best friend's parents were dead.

She sniffled loudly. "I've got to talk to Harry," she told her friends. "Don't wait for me."

Hermione squeezed her arm and Ron gave her a small smile. She had been terrified that her friends would reject her and abandon her in favor of the 'wronged' party; Harry. But Vesper knew that by these small gestures, that they weren't going anywhere.

Grabbing her cloak, she made her way out of the Three Broomsticks and began running up the street. Her now dry eyes scanned the mass of people for a mop of messy black hair. Unlike Harry, Vesper wasn't worried about keeping a low profile, so when she spotted him far up the street, she had no problem pushing and shoving to make her way over to him. Harry then made a sharp right turn, leading them into a less populated area of the village where no other student could be seen.

Vesper was sure that she was far enough away that no one would hear her, so she cried out, "Harry!" He ignored her and kept on walking at a faster pace.

Vesper ran up a slippery path towards some wooded areas that he was leading them to. "Harry!" she called. "Harry, please!" She finally caught up with him in a small clearing that led towards the Shrieking Shack. Vesper reached out her hand and grabbed him by the shoulder. "Harry-"

Harry whirled around bringing his hand with him. His hand back handed Vesper in her mouth, causing her to stumble. She tasted blood in her mouth.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he roared at her. Vesper flinched at the volume of his voice; Harry had never raised his voice at her before.

"I didn't know!" Vesper shouted back, wincing from her throbbing mouth.

"Like I'm supposed to believe that!" he shouted. "You knew, but you never said anything! You should have told me, but you didn't! You're no better than him, Vesper!"

She was officially pissed. He did not just compare her to her father! There were a number of choice words that she wanted to scream at Harry for being such a bloody idiot, but she forced herself to try to calm down and be reasonable.

Vesper took a moment to calm herself. "Please, Harry, just listen to me. I was trying to protect you. I was trying to save you from all this! Do you think I like seeing you in all this pain? It hurts me too, you know!" She took a shaky breath. "I'm your best friend, Harry," her voice turned bitter. "And I am not my father, I thought you knew that."

"Double-crossing obviously runs in the family. You betrayed my trust," said Harry. "I'm just glad that my misplaced faith in the Black family didn't end my life."

He started to walk off when Vesper yelled at him, "Don't you walk away from me, Harry James Potter!" Vesper began to march up to him. "Will you, for once in your life, just listen to me?"

"NO!" Harry roared, facing her again. "I am done listening to you," he sneered and once again started to make his way towards Hogsmeade.

"Harry-"

Too fast for her to see, Harry whipped around and shoved her away with all his might. Vesper stumbled backwards and fell onto the snow-covered ground. "Just keep away from me," he threatened, and this time, Vesper listened. She watched his retreating figure until she could no longer see it.

Numbness. That was all Vesper felt. She had no idea how long she had sat in the snow. It could have been hours, it could have been minutes, she wasn't sure. It didn't matter. The only thing that mattered now was Harry. How Harry had walked away, abandoned her, _hated_ her. Her first friend, the first person to not judge her because of her father…gone.

A sound like a mix between a whine and a bark brought Vesper back to her senses. Brushing the hair from her face, she looked and saw a big black dog sitting next to her.

"Hello there," she said quietly, scratching the dog on its head. "What are you doing out here?"

The dog just barked and shifted so that it was sitting right up against her.

"Did you come out in this weather just to sit with me?" Vesper asked dubiously. The dog licked her as if to say, 'Yes.' "You should really get inside, it's freezing out here and, unlike me, you don't deserve to be out in the cold and be miserable."

The dog tilted its head. Vesper gave a small laugh. "Well, you see, I did something bad. My dad, well, he wasn't very nice and he did some really bad things that affected my best friend." She glanced at the dog. He seemed eerily familiar, especially those grey eyes. "Anyway," continued Vesper. "I knew some things and he overheard some things that even I didn't know and now Harry h-hates me," she sobbed. "I was just trying to protect him, but Harry won't even listen to me, his best friend!"

Vesper cried for the next few minutes while the dog just nuzzled his head into her body. When she had calmed down, Vesper whipped her nose and saw that the dog's nose was runny too.

"Looks like someone's getting a cold," Vesper pointed out. "Maybe I should call you Snuffles." The dog barked in agreement.

"Sorry, Snuffles, but I really should be getting back, my friends are probably worried." She gave her new friend one last scratch on the head. "Maybe I'll see you next time," she said as she made her way back into the village. Checking her watch, Vesper realized that it was nearing dinner time and she picked up her pace.

The hike back to Hogwarts didn't take too terribly long. Soon enough she was in the Entrance Hall being greeted by her godfather.

"There you are, Vesper, I was getting worried," Remus said running a hand through his graying hair. "Everyone's at dinner already, what kept-Vesper, why are you covered in blood?"

She wiped her chin. Flecks of dried blood came off onto her hand. "Oh," Vesper said, her cut mouth remembered. "Well, it was my fault. You see, Harry back-handed me and-"

"Harry did this?" a shocked Remus asked. "Why?"

"Harry knows," she said softly. "Everything." Vesper pulled him into an empty room and began a revised version of what happened. "Harry had heard some of the teachers talking about my father. I came back from Hogsmeade early and Harry met me outside. He was angry and upset; it was an accident. He thought that I knew everything and kept it from him and we got into a huge fight. I stomped off to the forest to wallow in self misery, and then this great big black dog show up and-"

"Wait, wait, wait," Remus interrupted. "A big, black dog? What did it look like?"

"I dunno," Vesper asked, confused. "Big and black with shaggy hair, grey eyes…why do you ask?"

"Vesper," Remus began slowly. "I think that might have been your father."

"Oh my God, of course!" cried Vesper. "No wonder he looked familiar; I had seen him before in the photo album. Remus-" she cut short. "Remus I did something bad, something very bad."

"What are you talking about?" asked Remus.

"I was talking to him and I told him that I was Harry's best friend." Vesper looked at her godfather with scared eyes. "I just gave him the greatest way to get to Harry."

After Remus had calmed her down, Vesper decided to have dinner with Remus in his office that evening. She wasn't quite sure whether she wanted to see her friends or not. After a very quiet dinner, Vesper made her way up to Gryffindor tower using various passageways that she had discovered thanks to Fred and George.

The common room was still relatively empty as most people were still down at dinner.

"Hey, Vesper!"

Vesper looked over towards where her name had been called. Fred and George were over by the fireplace, both with a mischievous glint in their eyes.

"Vesper, darling," Fred said, extending his arm to her. "Would you honor us with your presence-"

"-In a little end of the term celebration?" George finished.

She peeked behind their backs and saw nothing short of half a dozen dungbombs. "Sorry, guys, but I'm not in the mood. Maybe some other time."

Vesper made her way up to her dormitory. At the foot of her bed was her trunk. Rifling through numerous books and clothes, she finally found what she was looking for. She grabbed the photo album and drew the curtains around her bad. After a quick Silencing charm she began flipping through the pages. Pictures of her father laughing with his friends littered the pages. Vesper couldn't help but smile along with them. They were so happy and carefree. She turned the page to the Potters' wedding. Her father had been James' best man. He didn't look like a man who was about to betray his best friend. _Did he know that he would betray his best friends?_ Vesper wondered. _And if he did it, who's to say that I couldn't?_

**A.N-Bit shorter than normal. It took longer to put out because I kept rewriting the Harry/Vesper confrontation scene over and over again. I think I got it right-I started to cry as I was saying the conversation out loud to make sure it made sense. Poor Vesper. Hope you guys like the little Vesper/Sirius moment I added in there.**

**Remember! 5 Reviews!**

**Love Lora**


	10. Chapter 10 Gifts from the Father

**Disclaimer-everything belongs to J.K. Rowling, not me.**

**Chapter 10 Gifts from the Father**

Vesper sat at a secluded table in the library finishing a potions essay that Snape had set them for the holidays. She had been in here all morning after not sleeping a wink last night. After she had finished looking through the photo album, Vesper had tossed and turned all night wondering what her life could have been like if her father had stayed the happy man from the pictures. She could clearly picture her father and herself sitting at a kitchen table pouring over a magazine on motorcycles while her mother, Lorna (AN-pic on profile), hummed quietly while making lunch. Maybe she would have younger brothers and sisters running around and would escape over to the Potter house when things got too hectic. Vesper sighed and set her quill down. These thoughts were getting her nowhere. What was done was done-her father was a dangerous convict and her mother was dead, simple as that. No use crying over spilled pumpkin juice.

No longer in the mindset to write an acceptable potions essay, Vesper packed her things up and left the empty library. She would just run to her dormitory and drop her things off before heading down to lunch. The long walk up to the tower was filled with much more pleasant thoughts. Vesper thought of enchanting the suits of armor to sing crude versions of Christmas songs when anyone walked by. She was sure Fred and George would be impressed.

She gave the password and as soon as the portrait swung open she heard voices in a rather serious discussion.

"-you mustn't do anything stupid."

"Like what?"

"Like going after Black!"

It was Harry, Ron, and Hermione. And by the sound of it, Vesper guessed that they were talking about the conversation they heard yesterday. Vesper didn't really want to be seen by them. She just wasn't sure whether or not she was ready to forgive Harry for the way he treated her. She knew that everything he said had been in anger, but that didn't mean that they hurt any less. So for now she decided to just wait in the shadows and hope they wouldn't notice her.

"Black's not worth dying for, mate," Vesper heard Ron say. There was a pause and then-

"Do you know what I hear every time I get near a dementor?" Harry said softly. "I can hear my mum screaming at Voldemort; begging for him to spare me. It's not something you forget in a hurry. And the thought of someone who was supposed to be her friend sending Voldemort after her-"

"There's nothing you can do, Harry!" said Hermione. "The dementors will catch him and he'll go back to Azkaban where he belongs."

_Join the club_, Vesper thought sarcastically. _My childhood hasn't exactly been 'carefree'_. She moved to cross her arms but the slight movement was enough to attract Harry's unwanted attention. Their eyes met and his narrowed in distrust as Ron said, "So you're saying you want to-kill Black or something?"

"Which one?" Venom leaked into Harry's voice. His question finally made Vesper snap.

"Okay, that is IT!" she shouted, throwing her school bag to the ground. Eyes half crazed, Vesper stalked forward to grab him by the scruff of his shirt and forced him against the stone wall. Wand drawn and pointed to his throat she began, "I am sick and tired of your bigheaded attitude! I let you walk all over me yesterday, but now it's _my _turn. You insulted me, you _**hit**_ me! But the worst thing you did was judging me without letting me explain! If you had just listened to me for five minutes, you would have learned that, yes, I did know that my father was friends with your parents and, _yes_, I knew that he was you godfather. But Harry-" Vesper paused, her rage replaced with hesitancy. She released his shirt, lowered her wand, and stepped back allowing him some room. "Harry," she continued, looking down at her shoes, "I swear to you that I _never_ knew what he did to your parents. I didn't tell you about him being your godfather for the same reason no one else told you or me for that matter." She glanced up at him sadly. "I wanted to protect you. But, if I had known about…you know…I would have told you. I could never keep that from you, _ever_; no matter how much it hurt."

After a few moments Harry said, "I was wrong."

"Yes, you were," said Vesper.

"I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions without hearing what you had to say."

"No, you shouldn't have."

"I was being and idiotic moron."

"An apt description."

"Can you ever forgive me?" Harry asked, sheepish.

"Hmm…I suppose so," said Vesper as she pulled him into a hug. She could never stay mad at him. But as they separated Vesper smacked him on the head. "Just don't do it again," she said with a smirk. "And don't even think about going after Black yourself!" she chided.

"Exactly what I told him," said Hermione proudly.

"Because I'm coming with you."

"No, you are most certainly not!" Hermione scolded. "Both of you are going to do no such thing!"

"Hey, why don't we go and visit Hagrid, we haven't seen him in ages," Ron interjected, thoroughly ending all talk of Black.

The visit with Hagrid hadn't exactly gone as hoped. The four of them had learned about the hearing that Buckbeak was being taken to because of the complaints of one, Lucius Malfoy. They immediately volunteered to look up evidence for Buckbeak's defense. The next several days were spent pouring over volumes of different cases on magical creatures. Before Vesper even knew it, Christmas morning was upon them and Christmas meant-

"Presents!" yelled Vesper.

"Vesper, go back to bed," came Hermione's voice muffled by her pillows. "I'm tired."

"Hermione, are you sure you're okay with your classes? I mean, you can always drop-"

"I'm fine," Hermione replied, sitting up. "Here, let me get your present." She got out of bed and opened her trunk and after some digging, handed Vesper her present. It was a book on Animagi. "I remember you saying you were interested in the subject," explained Hermione.

"Thank you," said Vesper. "I'll take a look at it later this afternoon." They opened the rest of their gifts in silence. Vesper received the usual from Mrs. Weasley-a knitted sweater and a package full of cakes and treats. Remus had given her a fully illustrated book on defensive spells, Harry a very nice quill and ink set, and Ron a large case of Pepper Imps, one of her favorite candies. Vesper had begun to clean up the mess of wrapping paper, when a long, thin, package wrapped in brown paper caught her attention.

"What have you got there?" Hermione asked, looking over Vesper's shoulder.

"Dunno," Vesper shrugged. "But I'm about to find out, aren't I?" She threw the brown paper behind her and lifted off the lid. Sitting there, surrounded by thin tissue paper, was a broomstick with a shiny golden _Firebolt_ logo painted on the handle.

"Merlin's beard," whispered Vesper, in a state of shock.

"Is there a card or anything?"

"Not that I can see."

"I wonder who would buy it for you," Hermione wondered. "Do you think it was R-"

"It wasn't Remus, Hermione," said Vesper. "There's no possible way he could afford it. Besides, he would have left a note or something."

"Well, keep looking," said Hermione. "I'm going to go see if Harry and Ron are up yet."

Vesper nodded and said she would be there in a few minutes. After Hermione left, she continued riffling through the paper to no avail. It wasn't until she turned the box over that Vesper found anything of consequence. On the floor lie a silver locket (AN-link on profile). It was oval in shape with swirling vine-like designs around a diamond shaped gem. Curious as to the contents, Vesper quickly and deftly opened the locket. On one side was a picture of her mother and father looking lovingly at each other. In the other side where a picture should be, a note was wedged into the tiny space. Unfurling it, Vesper read:

_To my darling little Star,_

_Happy Christmas. I am sorry that I'm not there in person to give you this gift. I am sorry that I was never there, or your mother. I truly blame myself for her death and I do not blame you if you believe the same. Please just know that everything I have ever done, was to protect you, your mother, and Harry._

_Sincerely_

_Your loving father_

_PS-If my assumptions in assuming that you inherited your mother's intelligence are correct (which I believe they are) then you are probably suspicious of the broom and Harry's as well. I can tell you plainly that nothing has been done to them but you would not be your mother's child if you did not check._

Vesper blanched. That was not at all what she was expecting. The letter, short though it may be, clearly emanated honesty and heartfelt emotions. She could tell that the man she called father really believed in what he was saying in this note. With this realization, she wasn't sure what she wanted to feel: hopeful or furious. Hopeful, because if what he said in this letter was true, maybe he wasn't as heartless as everyone believed him to be and maybe there was some goodness in him. Did he even possibly feel remorse towards what he did? But the fury quickly outweighed the hope. Did he think her a fool? That he could win her over with a few emotional words? That she would so easily forget that he still killed over a dozen people in the span of twenty four hours? Vesper had no idea what to make of it; she was so confused!

Deciding to ignore it for now, she donned her dressing gown, grabbed her new Firebolt, slipped the locket into her pocket and made her way over to Harry and Ron's dormitory.

"What's the matter with you?" Ron asked Hermione as Vesper entered the room.

"Well," said Hermione, "isn't it a bit odd? Having two of the best broom being sent anonymously. I mean, one must have been expensive enough, but two? Why would someone send Harry and Vesper such expensive brooms and not even say it was them?"

"Oh stop looking a gift horse in the mouth, Hermione," said Ron, impatiently. "Listen, Harry, can I have a go on it?"

"I don't think anyone should ride on those brooms just yet!" Hermione said sharply.

"And why not?" retorted Ron.

But just then, Crookshanks, whom Vesper hadn't noticed, leapt and grabbed onto the front of Ron's pajamas. A terrified looking Scabbers clambered out of the front pocket of Ron's pajama shirt and attempted to jump off his shoulder. Ron caught him by the tail and tried to kick a hissing Crookshanks. He missed and hit his foot against Harry's trunk spilling its contents everywhere. The whirling sound of a Sneakerscope added to the mayhem as Harry grabbed it and tried to stuff it back into an old pair of socks.

"Come on, Hermione," Vesper said. "Let's get him out of here." She bent down and stretched out her arm for Crookshanks to come to her. As soon as he was close enough, Vesper scooped him into her arms and headed down the staircase. To Hermione she said, "Is it just me, or is it weird that Crookshanks only seems to go after Ron's rat?"

"I've noticed that too," said Hermione slowly. "There are plenty of other mice running around the castle, but why Scabbers?"

"Maybe there's something we aren't seeing," Vesper mused.

The rest of the morning held little Christmas cheer. Ron was still furious with Hermione and vice versa. Harry had brought down his Firebolt to examine it and that just seemed to annoy Hermione further. Eventually Vesper couldn't take the thick tension of the room anymore and left to seek solace in the library.

She worked for several hours until it was nearing lunchtime. Not feeling hungry, Vesper decided to go visit an ailing Remus, who was just days away from transformation.

The walk to his office was uneventful. At the door to his office, Vesper made to raise her hand to knock but it swung open before she had a chance. It was Snape coming out of the room. "Black," he sneered at her. Vesper glared at him but did not dare make a retort.

"Ah, Vesper, do come in," Remus said, as he saw her in the doorway. "I was just about to make some tea."

"Sure," Vesper replied, stepping into the office. "How are you feeling? I know the full moon isn't for a few more days, but-"

"I'm fine," interrupted Remus. "Anxious as always, but otherwise fine." He handed Vesper her cup of tea and she took a sip.

"Harry says that you're going to teach him how to fight dementors."

"Yes," Remus said, "right after the holidays. I believe that I've figured out a way to create a fake dementor. Harry's boggart is a dementor, you see. So all that's left is to find one somewhere around the castle, hopefully soon." He looked at her curiously. "Why do you bring it up?"

"I was wondering if you could teach me as well," said Vesper. Remus opened his mouth to say something but Vesper sufficiently cut him off and added in a hurry, "I mean, I know that the dementors don't affect me as strongly but it's still not the average reaction I'm guessing, and if I knew how to fight them then maybe I could help Harry if something bad happen or if there were multiple ones, or something," she finished lamely.

"Will you let me speak now?" Remus asked with a grin. She nodded. "Now then, I think it is a very good idea for you to learn as well. As long as Harry doesn't mind-"

"He doesn't," she added quickly.

"Then I see no problem."

They finished their tea in comfortable conversation about her studies.

"Thanks for the tea, Moony." Vesper left before he could tell her off.

She caught up with Harry and Ron in the common room. Hermione still wasn't back yet ("Probably wanted to ask McGonagall if she could take anymore classes," said Ron).

"We missed you at lunch," Harry said. "Trelawney made an appearance."

"Was a right laugh," said Ron, a small smile on his face. "Made a big deal about thirteen people dining together, superstitious old bat."

Their laughter was interrupted by the portrait hole opening to reveal a rather flustered Hermione and Professor McGonagall. Even though she was the head of Gryffindor House, Vesper had never actually seen her in the common room before. It was a bit of an unnerving sight.

"Miss Granger has informed me that you, Mr. Potter, and you, Miss Black, have both received broomsticks," McGonagall stated. "Miss Black, would you go fetch yours while I look at Potter's here?"

Vesper nodded her head and rushed to her dormitory to grab the Firebolt. Coming back down the stairs she could hear McGonagall's shrill voice.

"There was no message of any kind? No note or card?"

"No," said Harry.

"And what about you Black?" said McGonagall, directing her attention to Vesper now. She hesitated for no more than a second before replying, "No, Professor. Nothing."

"I see," McGonagall said gravely. "I'm sorry you two, but I'm afraid that I'm going to have to confiscate these."

"What!" Ron and Harry shouted. "Why?"

"To be checked for curses and jinxes," said McGonagall. "Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick will strip it down-"

"Strip it down?" Ron repeated in horror.

"It won't take more than a few weeks. I will keep you informed, Potter, Black." And she left the room.

The second she was gone, Ron rounded on Hermione.

"What did you go running to McGonagall for?" he shouted. "You just couldn't mind your own business, could you?"

Hermione stood up from the chair she had previously occupied. "I did what I thought was right."

"No you didn't! You just wanted to look good for McGonagall!"

But Hermione had had enough. She turned sharply and ran back up the stairs to the girls' dormitory; the slightest sound of a sob was barely audible.

"Lay off Ron," Vesper said coldly. This was the first time she had spoken since this had begun.

"Vesper, how can you defend her? Your broom, your Firebolt, is being stripped apart because of her!"

"Good!" she shouted. "Saves me the trouble of asking McGonagall myself!"

"Why would you…" Ron trailed off.

She rolled her eyes and started towards the girls' dorms. "Well, obviously the brooms were sent by Sirius Black, now weren't they?"

**AN-Yes I know that was an unacceptable amount of time in between updates. Problem was 1) I was gone for a week, 2) I had family visiting for nearly 3 weeks which meant no computer, and 3) writers block. Also I will be gone for 10 days which means no computer, so I will try to handwrite some stuff while I'm gone.**

**In lighter new there is a ****_**NEW POLL**_**** on my profile on what Vesper's Patronus should be. Go check it out.**

**Also, any suggestions for Vesper's happiest memory would be greatly appreciated!**

**Again, 5 reviews before the next update though I don't know when that will be.**

**Love Lora**


	11. Chapter 11 The Patronus

Disclaimer-JK Rowling: all. Me: zero.

Important AN at the bottom!

Chapter 11 The Patronus

Harry and Ron were furious at Hermione. Both believed that her actions to have the Firebolts stripped down were practically criminal. Vesper, while she didn't like the thought of her Firebolt being stripped to nothing, had to side with Hermione. Vesper had actual proof that Sirius Black sent the brooms, for goodness sake! But, this would also allow her to see if her father had, in fact, been truthful or really was trying to hurt Harry. Vesper honestly tried to think about it as little as possible. If her father had been telling the truth and meant no harm to Harry…the idea made her head spin.

There were drawbacks to choosing Hermione's side, though. Siding with her meant that she was fighting with Harry and Ron too. She wasn't angry with them, like Hermione was, but nonetheless they refused to talk to her. The fight had escaladed to the point of Hermione avoiding the common room at all costs. The rest of their holiday was spent cooped up in the library, spending hours doing homework and researching trial information for Buckbeak. Late at night, in the safety of the girls' dormitory, Hermione would sob and ask Vesper if she had 'done the right thing'. Vesper assured her that she had.

She was grateful still for the start of term. Classes provided a welcome distraction to the tension between Hermione and the boys (although Vesper was close to letting Hermione fight by herself-she couldn't take much more!). Hermione's over-the-top class schedule and the resulting homework was adding too much strain on her already weary body and mind, and a stressed Hermione, meant an impatient and short-tempered Hermione.

It wasn't until their first Defense Against the Dark Arts class of the new year that Hermione's foul mood began to exasperate Vesper. She had been waiting for Hermione to rearrange her bag while Harry had been asking Remus about the anti-dementor lessons. It was Ron's comment about Lupin still looking ill that set Hermione off.

"Well, isn't it _obvious_?" said Hermione.

"If you don't want to tell us, don't!" snapped Ron.

"Fine," Hermione said, haughtily, and she marched off leaving Vesper with a stunned look on her face. It took only a second for Vesper to regain her composure and run after Hermione.

"Hey, 'Mione, wait up!" Vesper called after her. Hermione paused and waited for Vesper to catch up. "Let's talk in here," said Vesper, pulling Hermione into an empty classroom.

"What was that?"

"What was what?" Hermione asked impatiently.

"You were trying to expose Remus!" said Vesper indignantly. "You've got to realize that I'm on your side, Hermione. And I understand that you're angry with Harry and Ron and you're stressed but you don't need to take all your frustrations out on me."

She burst into tears. "You're right, Vesper! I-I'm s-s-so sorry. I don't know w-what came ov-ver me. It's j-just that Harry and R-R-Ron h-hate me and there's so m-much work f-for my c-c-classes-"

"Oh, Hermione," said Vesper, softly, grabbing her friend into a hug. "I forgive you. But you know, maybe you could drop some of your classes?"

"Oh, no!" Hermione cried. "I love them all so much, I couldn't possibly!" She wiped her nose. "I really am sorry," she said quietly.

"I know," Vesper replied gently. "Besides," she said, pulling Hermione out of the room, "Harry and Ron are probably too thick to figure it out anyways!"

Vesper found herself in the History of Magic classroom at 8 o'clock Thursday evening. She and Harry were waiting for the arrival of Remus. The silence in the room was awkward and uncomfortable. Maybe she had been too quick to forgive Harry. Was he even really sorry for yelling at her? Maybe she shouldn't have admitted to wanting to tell McGonagall about the Firebolt. Maybe she shouldn't have told Harry about getting out of the castle! Ugh! This was all so confusing! Had this been anyone else, Vesper really wouldn't have cared, but with Harry, everything mattered. She needed his approval, his acceptance…but why?

The sound of the door opening brought Vesper out of her internal musings. Remus came in carrying a large trunk and plopped it onto Professor Binn's desk with a thud.

"What's that?" said Harry.

"Another boggart," said Remus, removing his cloak. "I was lucky enough to find this one; I've been scouring the castle for days. Seeing as we can't practice with a real dementor, this will have to do.

You'll have to stand behind Harry, Vesper, so that the boggart remains a dementor," Remus said.

"Okay," she said, not meeting either of their eyes.

"Now…" Remus stood before her and Harry. "The spell I am going to teach you two is extremely advanced magic, most fully grown wizards and witches have trouble with this spell. It's called the Patronus Charm."

"How does it work?" asked Harry.

"It produces a Patronus," Vesper said, still not looking at Harry. "It acts as a shield; the dementor feeds off the Patronus instead of you, giving you a chance to run."

"Exactly," said Remus, drawing his wand. "It is conjured with the incantation along with a very strong happy memory."

Vesper's heart sunk. Did she have any memories powerful enough to work for the spell? Her time at the orphanage wasn't horrible, but it really wasn't a happy time either. The beginning of her time staying with Remus wasn't all that happy either; she had spent as much time alone in her room as possible. But a week after he had taken her to his house…that was definitely a happy memory. She had come home from school and saw Remus making things fly across the room. Vesper had always known she was different from the other children, but after seeing that…she knew that she wasn't alone.

"Now the incantation is expecto patronum, yes?"

"Expecto patronum," Harry and Vesper repeated.

"Very good," said Remus. "Now then, concentrate hard on your memory, and say the incantation."

Vesper focused very hard on her memory; her heart racing with excitement, the lightness of her stomach, the joy of not being alone…

"Expecto patronum," she whispered. A feeling like a string being pulled from her head all the way down to her arm and out her wand overcame Vesper. She took a glimpse down at her wand and saw a thin strand of silvery smoke emanating from the tip. She peeked over to where Harry was standing and saw that he had managed to produce similar results, although his vapor was thicker and less translucent than hers.

"Something's happened!" Harry exclaimed.

"Excellent, both of you," said Remus. "Ready to try with the dementor?"

Harry replied, "Yes," while Vesper just tersely nodded her head. She wasn't ready, that much was obvious. Her patronus was visibly weaker than Harry's. The memory wasn't happy enough. Knowing that she would fail, Vesper stood behind Harry and prepared herself anyway.

Remus grasped the lid of the trunk and pulled.

The lights in the room flickered for a moment before going out. The cold radiating in the room seemed to freeze Vesper's insides; her head began to pound.

"Expecto patronum," she said through clenched teeth, trying to keep her breathing regulated. But nothing happened. She tried again, "Expect-" but a sharp pain pulsed through her head, bringing Vesper down to her knees. She was vaguely aware of Harry collapsing in front of her. And then suddenly, the cold and despair were gone. The weight on Vesper's chest vanished and she could breath properly again. New life was given to the lights and Vesper could see again. It was almost an exact replica of the ride to Hogwarts: she, nearly suffocated and Harry, unconscious on the ground.

"Time for a new memory," Vesper said, dryly. Remus gave her a tight smile that didn't reach his eyes. He walked over and knelt beside Harry.

"Harry!"

Harry's eyes flashed open. "Sorry," he muttered, pulling himself off of the floor.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked, handing them both a bit of chocolate.

"It's getting worse," Harry said. Vesper stared blankly at him; what was the boy talking about? "I could hear her louder this time-and him-Voldemort-"

Remus became quite pale. "Harry, are you sure you want to continue?"

"Yes!" said Harry, adamantly. "I mean, what if the dementors show up during the next Quidditch match? I can't afford to fall off my broom again and lose to Ravenclaw. If we do then we've lost the Cup!"

"Alright, then…" said Remus. "Perhaps the two of you should select a different memory, a really happy memory. These don't seem to be working."

She tried finding another memory, but Vesper's mind drew up blank. She just decided to let Harry try on his own. His second attempt at the Patronus went much like his first. After a few tries, he collapsed on the floor. Vesper got up from where she was seated and went to Harry's unconscious form and began lightly tapping him on the face to get him to wake up.

"Harry! Harry-wake up…"

Green eyes slowly opened to meet blue. Vesper offered him her hand. Harry took it, pulled himself up, and let go leaving Vesper's hand strangely empty. "I heard my dad," he said to Remus. "That's the first time I ever heard him. He was telling my mum to run; he would hold Voldemort off…" Harry seemed to forget that Vesper was in the room. _So that's what he hears when the dementors come near_, Vesper thought, _it's the night his parents died. Oh, Harry…_

"Ready?" Remus asked. Vesper was momentarily confused. She had missed the conversation that had passed between Harry and Remus. "Go!"

Cold once more gripped the room. Harry began shouts of "EXPECTO PATRONUM! _EXPECTO PATRONUM!_" and then, a silver shadow came forth from Harry's wand.

Remus cried "Riddikulus!" and the boggart dementor once again was trapped in the traveling trunk. "Excellent, Harry," he beamed. "I think that's enough for one night. Here-" he handed them each a bit of chocolate. "Eat or Madam Pomfrey will be after my head. Same time next week?"

"Okay," said Harry. Vesper grabbed her bag and was about to turn and leave when-

"Professor Lupin?" Harry asked. "If you knew my dad in school, then you must have known Sirius Black as well."

Really, was Harry completely ignorant of the fact that she was standing _right there?_ He had done nothing but ignore her the entire night. Vesper turned and practically ran towards the door, desperately trying to block their voices. All she wanted right now was to be alone.

**AN-Yes, I KNOW it's been forever and I'm sorry. RL and future book plot bunnies got in the way but not anymore…I hope.**

**School has started which means more time to write, as weird as that sounds.**

**VERY IMPORTANT LINE IN THIS CHAPTER!**

_Knowing that she would fail, Vesper stood behind Harry and prepared herself anyway._

**Try and figure out the importance, I'll tell y'all in the next chapter and a SPECIAL PRIZE to whoever gets it right!**

**Remember, 5 REVIEWS for a new chapter!**

**Love, Lora**

**ALSO! How awesome was the new HP7 P.1 trailer?**


	12. Chapter 12 Rat, Cat, and Bird

Disclaimer-I don't own anything except Vesper, JK Rowling owns everything else.

**Chapter 12 Rat, Cat, and Bird**

Vesper was exhausted, physically and mentally. Oliver Wood had increased their Quidditch practice to five times a week after Slytherin beat Ravenclaw, which according to him, was a good thing. After another dementor lesson that produced limited results, Remus had suggested that she use the time to search her; maybe there was a memory she had overlooked. Yet, with all Vesper's soul searching for a truly happy memory, nothing turned up. All this led to late night homework sessions with Hermione as her silent companion. She wanted to tell Hermione to drop some of her classes, the strain obviously taking a toll on her well-being, but Hermione adamantly refused and continued to be the last to leave the common room each night.

With January turning to February, the upcoming match of Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw drew nearer. Professor McGonagall still hadn't returned the confiscated Firebolts to Harry and her. Harry had taken to asking for them after every Transfigurations class. Vesper knew that it was just a waiting game; there was nothing wrong with the brooms. She had no proof on that claim, of course, except for her father's word, but in her gut she just…_knew_.

And she was right. A few weeks later while reading in the common room, Professor McGonagall came in holding the two Firebolts.

"Miss Black," Professor McGonagall said, handing over the sleek broom. "We checked them for everything we could think of and nothing turned up. Do you know where Mr. Potter is?"

"He's with Professor Lupin," said Vesper. She gave a small smile to the older witch, "Thank you, Professor."

McGonagall surprised her by returning the smile. "No trouble, Miss Black; just make sure to make good use of it, hmm?"

"Of course, Professor," she said, beaming. She attempted to make her way back to where she had been working on homework, but was accosted from all sides by people wanting to see the Firebolt. A minute later the sound of the portrait hole opening made everyone turn and see Harry and Ron enter the common room, identical smiles of triumph on their faces. Gryffindors began to crowd around Harry as well. After several minutes of _ohhs _and _ahhs_, Vesper fought through them to get to Harry and dragged him over to an unoccupied area of the room.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey."

"Look," started Vesper after a moment. "I know I've been a bit…distracted lately, I guess, but with everything going on with the dementor lessons, and you and Ron being angry with Hermione and me, I just…" She took a deep breath. "You're my best friend, Harry, and I don't like not being able to be with you…and Ron."

"I wasn't mad," Harry said, "just severely disappointed. And maybe a bit annoyed. I didn't and don't understand why you'd be fine with sneaking me into Hogsmeade, and not with a broomstick."

"I wanted you to have a bit of fun, but it ended up doing more damage than good. Everything's been different since then," Vesper said, softly. "Anyway," she continued; stronger this time. "You and Ron should really apologize to Hermione. She's-"

"We are," he said quickly. "Right now in fact."

"Good."

Ron was already heading for Hermione. When he had spotted Harry and Vesper beside him, he grabbed Harry's Firebolt and said, "See? Told you two there was nothing wrong with them!"

"Well-there might have been," said Hermione. "And now we know that they're safe."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Harry. "I'd better take this upstairs-"

"I'll do it," Ron offered, grabbing the broom and dashing up the stairs to the boy's dormitory. Vesper sat down in her previous seat and laid her new broom across her lap. She continued on with the Arithmancy essay that she had previously been working on.

"May I sit down?"

"I suppose."

"I don't get how you're getting through all this stuff," Harry said. "Why not drop a few classes?"

"Oh, but I couldn't!" said Hermione earnestly. "They're all so wonderful, especially Arithmancy. It's-"

A loud cry cut her off. Looking to the boy's dormitory, Vesper saw Ron rushing down the spiraled staircase, a bed sheet gripped in his white hands.

"LOOK!" he yelled, shoving the fabric into Hermione's face. "SEE WHAT'S ON IT?"

"Ron, I - ?" Hermione sputtered.

"BLOOD!" he continued. "AND SCABBERS! SCABBERS IS GONE! AND DO YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR? THESE!"

Ron threw something onto Hermione's ancient rune translation. Vesper saw several long ginger hairs, and her heart sunk.

"Face it, their friendship is doomed."

Harry just nodded. "It's doomed."

Vesper and Harry were eating a quick dinner with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team before practice that evening. Ron was sitting a few seats away from them across from Fred and George. Hermione hadn't shown up for dinner yet. Vesper suspected that she was waiting until practice started.

Ron had taken the loss of his pet rat very hard. He adamantly believed that Scabbers had been eaten by Crookshanks and refused to speak to Hermione…again. Vesper wanted to talk to Hermione; tell her that it was possible that Crookshanks ate Scabbers, but after she snapped at Harry, Vesper decided against bringing the point up.

The team made their way up to the pitch where Madam Hooch was waiting. Thankfully, she noticed Harry first and grabbed him to talk about the Firebolt instead of her. It was a full ten minutes before Wood reminded Madam Hooch that Harry needed to practice. Angelina, Katie, and Vesper began warming up by flying a few laps around the field. It hadn't taken very long before she lapped both of them twice. Katie actually screamed as Vesper soared past her once. After the Quaffle was thrown in the air, Vesper found herself having to fly slower to let Angelina and Katie catch up with her to complete the play. "New strategy," Angelina joked. "Give Vesper the Quaffle and be done with it!"

It was a marvelous practice. Every move was executed without fault. The presence of the two Firebolts seemed to give everyone an extra edge of confidence. Even Oliver didn't have a single criticism, and as George pointed out, was a first.

"There is absolutely nothing that can stop us tomorrow!" Wood shouted as practice came to an end. "Unless-Harry, you've got your dementor problem sorted out, haven't you?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "Professor Lupin's been helping me."

"Excellent. If they show up again-"

"They won't, Oliver. Dumbledore'd go berserk," said Fred confidently.

"Right, well let's turn in early; get a good night's rest."

"I'm going to stay out a bit," Harry said. "Ron wanted a turn on the Firebolt."

"I'll stay with you," said Vesper. She and Ron switched places as he jumped down from the seats and headed for the inner field. Vesper took her Ron's place beside a sleeping Madam Hooch. She watched as Ron mounted the broom and rose into the darkening sky. He had the potential for a good player, but he lacked the grace that Harry possessed while flying. Night fell before Madam Hooch woke with a start. She told off all three of them for not waking her and told them to head back for the castle.

Morning came soon enough and found Vesper, broom in hand, making her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. The sound of excited murmuring reached her ears, and Vesper could soon see why. A whole crowd of people from different Houses were gathered around the Gryffindor table. She pushed her way through the throng and took a seat next to Harry and Ron.

It wasn't too much longer before a drawling voice came from behind.

"Sure you can manage that broom, Potter?"

Vesper turned in her seat to see Malfoy along with Crabbe and Goyle.

"I reckon so," said Harry smoothly.

"It's got plenty of special features, doesn't it?" Malfoy continued. "Shame it doesn't have a parachute-in case a dementor gets too near."

"Shame you can't attach an extra arm to your broom, Malfoy, that way it could catch the Snitch for you."

Vesper laughed loudly along with the rest of the team. Malfoy narrowed his eyes in malice, but just walked away back to the Slytherin table.

A quarter to eleven, the Gryffindor team was changing in the lockers rooms preparing for the game.

"We have to win," said Wood. "If we lose, then we're out of the running for the Cup. If we just fly like we did yesterday during practice, then match should be ours."

They walked out onto the field to great applause. The two teams stood facing each other as the captains shook hands. Vesper noticed the Ravenclaw Seeker, Cho Chang, give a smile at Harry, who nervously smiled back. A strange knot formed in her stomach as she watched the small interaction between them.

"On my whistle…three-two-"

Vesper quickly pushed down these strange feeling. She mounted her broom, and kicked off right as the whistle blew. Vesper quickly grabbed the Quaffle and threw it to Angelina before racing down towards the Ravenclaw end of the pitch.

"They're off, and the big excitement for this match are the new Firebolts that Harry Potter and Vesper Black are sporting for Gryffindor," said Lee Jordan, commentating on the match as usual. "Complete with built-in auto-brakes, this broom is said to be the number one choice for national teams-"

"Jordan!" came Professor McGonagall's voice. "Tell us about the match!"

Right you are, Professor," said Lee. "Okay, Gryffindor in possession of the Quaffle, Angelina Johnson passes to Katie Bell, Bell headed for the goal…"

Vesper watched the Quaffle soar into a Ravenclaw hoop. The Ravenclaw Keeper tossed the Quaffle to a nearby Chaser. Vesper darted ahead of her fellow Chasers, trying to get in front of the Chaser in possession of the Quaffle. They were nearly neck and neck when the Ravenclaw Chaser passed the ball. With unbelievable speed, Vesper managed to pull in front of the receiving Chaser and grab the Quaffle. The roar of the crowd mixed with the wind as she rushed back towards the Ravenclaw end. As she got closer, Vesper threw the ball to Katie, who then at the last second reversed it back to Vesper. Vesper took aim and launched the ball through the right hoop.

The game continued and found Gryffindor up eighty to zero. Not much longer after that, Ravenclaw began to pull ahead, the score now eighty to thirty. Even with the Firebolt, the Ravenclaw Chasers seemed to have found a system for out flying them. But Vesper could see that Harry was having his own problems. She looked down at him in time to see Cho Chang cut in front of him once again.

"HARRY, THIS IS NO TIME TO BE A GENTLEMAN!" Wood roared.

Frustrated, Vesper called out, "KNOCK HER OFF HER BROOM IF YOU HAVE TO!" A flying Quaffle drew back her attention and she barely managed to catch it with her fingertips. She zoomed down the field and just scored another goal for Gryffindor, when a scream brought her attention to the Gryffindor end. She saw three hooded figures-dementors. But there was no cold, clammy feeling. She was breathing normally. Vesper watched at Harry quickly cast a Patronus and caught the Snitch. She hardly remembered the trip, but the next thing Vesper knew was that she was engulfing Harry in a tight, crushing hug. He had done it.

They had won.

**AN-I apologize for any mistakes but I was more concerned with getting this out.**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter and added this story to their alert/favorites list. It means the world to me.**

**Up next, more Sirius troubles and a Hogsmeade trip gone bad.**

**Remember, 5 reviews!**

**Love Lora**


	13. Chapter 13 Of Mud and Maps

Disclaimer-I own nothing; JK Rowling does.

****Important AN at the bottom!**

**Chapter 13 Of Mud and Maps**

The party in the Gryffindor common room had been going on for several hours. While Fred and George decided to sneak into Hogsmeade to get armfuls of candy and butterbeer, Vesper chose to make a visit to the kitchens. With trays and trays of treats (with the help of Wingardium Leviosa), she made her way back to the common room undetected. Hermione, despite Harry's badgering, refused to join in the festivities, preferring to do her homework upstairs in the dormitory. Vesper suspected that Ron's foul attitude had something to do with it.

The party lasted all through the evening and into the night. It only ended when Professor McGonagall showed up at one in the morning in her night dress and told them to go to bed. Vesper walked dejectedly up the stairs to her dormitory. On the way to her bed, Vesper looked over towards Hermione's bed and saw her asleep, still fully clothed and with a book in her lap. She carefully marked her friend's place in the book, removed her shoes, and pulled the covers over her sleeping form. Hermione truly was working herself to death.

Vesper removed her own clothes gingerly; the soreness from the match was just beginning to set in. She collapsed onto her bed and instantly fell asleep, dreaming of nothing.

…

Vesper woke with a start. A loud commotion had pulled her from her slumber. She quickly grabbed her dressing gown, reached for her wand, and headed out of the room not even bothering to put on her slippers. The light in the common room was faint but Vesper instantly recognized the figures of Harry and Ron through the growing crowd of sleepy Gryffindors. She began weaving through the throng to reach her friends.

"Excellent, are we carrying on?" said Fred.

"What's going on?" Vesper asked as she grabbed onto her two friends. But they couldn't answer her before Percy started shouting orders.

"Everyone is to get back upstairs!" called Percy. "Right now! I'm Head Boy!"

"Perce-Sirius Black," Ron said faintly to his older brother. Vesper could make out that he was shaking. "He was in our dormitory with a knife! Woke me up!"

_No, no, no, no, no, NO!_ thought Vesper. Not now, not her friend. _Please don't let this turn into another Harry fiasco!_

"Don't be ridiculous," said Percy, a look of surprise on his face. "You were obviously dreaming-"

"It wasn't-"

"Really now, this is enough!"

"Professor McGonagall," Percy said, rushing up to her side. "I was just telling them to get back to bed. My brother Ron had a nightmare-"

Ron shoved his brother out of his way. "It wasn't a dream Professor, I swear! I woke up and Sirius Black was standing over me, holding a knife!"

McGonagall paused for a moment before saying, "Don't be ridiculous Mr. Weasley. How could've Black gotten through the portrait hole?"

"Ask him!" Ron shouted, pointing at the back of Sir Cadogan's picture. "See if he let anyone in!"

And McGonagall did. She went back outside to talk to the portrait. Vesper, along with the rest of the common room, listened with bated breath.

"Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man enter this tower?"

"Certainly, milady!"

"Bu-but what about the passwords?"

"He had the list for the entire week ma'am, all written down on a little piece of paper."

McGonagall turned back into the common room, her face ashen. "Which foolish person," she began, and Vesper couldn't tell if her voice was shaking from rage or fear. "Which extremely foolish person left a list of passwords lying around?"

And then, slowly, a trembling Neville put his hand into the air.

"I hate those things," Vesper said Monday morning on her way to breakfast. "They smell awful."

"It's just for security," said Hermione, her face buried in a book. "I'm sure once things calm down, the trolls will leave." Vesper gently steered her towards two empty seats in the Great Hall. Hermione didn't even glance up from her book to see what she was piling on her plate. "I thought you usually sat with Harry and Ron during breakfast?"

"Not until this whole thing blows over," said a sullen Vesper. "There's only so many times I can hear about one of my best friends almost getting murdered by my psychopathic father before it starts to get old."

Hermione immediately looked up from her book, eyes wide. "Oh, Vesper, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean-it's just that I've just been so worried about Ron that I didn't think, and now you're upset, and-"

"Hey, hey, hey! Hermione, it's fine!" Vesper reached over to wipe the already formed tears from her friend's eyes. "Look at me," she said softly, but still with slight authority. "I'm not upset and I'm not mad at you, okay?"

Hermione nodded but Vesper could tell that she was still very distressed, so she changed the subject. "So, how was your visit to Hagrid's yesterday?"

"It was alright," said Hermione, picking up her book again. "We talked about the trail Friday and went over everything we gave him. Normally, I would say they stood a good chance, but with Lucius Malfoy there…" she trailed off and sighed, as if in defeat. "They really don't stand a chance."

Lessons carried on throughout the day as usual. As Hermione and Vesper sat down for dinner, Vesper noticed the absence of Harry and Ron. Hermione either didn't notice this fact or chose it ignore it. Vesper didn't feel the need to make Hermione talk about it if she didn't want to.

Later in the common room they were doing the day's homework. Vesper was writing an essay for Herbology while Hermione appeared to be working on five things at once. Just looking at the large stack of books blocking out the rest of the room, Vesper surmised that it could have been even more than that. Close to nine, a small pop echoed through the room and people rushed to look at the new announcement on the bulletin board. Vesper got up to see what all the fuss was about seeing as Hermione hadn't made any inclination as to get up. The message simply stated that there would be a visit to Hogsmeade next weekend. Vesper returned to her seat and began leafing through some of Hermione's Muggle Studies books. She really didn't notice when Hermione got up until she heard her say Harry's name. She peered around the large pile of books and saw Harry, Ron and Hermione in a heated argument.

"Harry, if you go to Hogsmeade again…I'll tell Professor McGonagall! _And_ I'll tell her about that map, too!"

"Can you hear someone talking, Harry?" Ron said his voice cold as ice.

"Ron, how can you let him go, _especially_ after what Sirius Black almost did to _you_! I swear, I'll tell McGonagall!"

"So now you're trying to get Harry expelled!" said Ron furiously. "Haven't you done enough damage already this year?"

Vesper watch wide eyed as Hermione took running for the girls' dormitory. She started gathering up Hermione's things. "So, are you up for it?" asked Ron. Vesper didn't bother waiting for Harry's answer. She brushed past Harry and Ron and walked up the stairs to the dormitory to comfort a crying Hermione.

Vesper sat down the quill to ease her cramping hand. She was going to kill Fred and George. "'Next time, don't get caught'," she mimicked. _Yeah, great advice_, Vesper thought. The three of them had been planning on setting off a couple Dungbombs in the Dungeons when Filch came out of nowhere. The Twins had slipped into a nearby secret passage way and got away clean, while Vesper had gotten caught and was now stuck writing lines in detention missing the Hogsmeade trip.

Filch's office was cold and damp. It had one small window that was covered with moth-eaten velvet curtains. Small patches of sunlight were making their way into the dark room through the holes in the curtains; mocking Vesper with the promise of a beautiful day while she was trapped inside.

Suddenly Filch was in front of her. "Paper," he barked. Vesper handed over the paper that she had been toiling over; writing for hours _I am nothing more than a delinquent and will never amount to anything_. She waited impatiently while he counted each and every sentence.

Finally, he handed it back to her. "Far too easy a punishment, I think. In the old days I could-"

"Hang me from the ceiling by my thumbs, I _know_!" Vesper finished as she ran out the door. A quick look at her watch told her it was still early in the morning, just a little before eleven. If she ran to the tower, she could fetch her cloak and have plenty of time in Hogsmeade.

The corridors were mostly deserted except for a few straggling First and Second Years. She reached the common room in no time, and turned around to head out to the grounds. Vesper rounded the corner on a third floor corridor and saw Harry jumping out of a statue. She rushed up to him. "Harry, what-"

Quickly approaching footsteps silenced her. She turned, and to her great distress saw Professor Snape, his black robes billowing from his speed.

"So," he said, a glorious look of triumph on his face. _Clearly_, Vesper thought, _Harry did something stupid in Hogsmeade and got caught. And by Snape no less!_

"Come with me, Potter," Snape barked. "You too, Black."

On their way downstairs Vesper tried catching Harry's eye, trying to figure out exactly how much trouble he had gotten into…and dragged her into as well. But Harry was not looking at her. He was desperately wiping his hands on the inside of his robes, though Vesper couldn't imagine what was on them and how that pertained to the situation.

Vesper had never been in Snape's personal office before. Her detention with him had always been held in the Potion's classroom. All along the circular room, were rounded shelves filled with unnamable contents. Vesper hoped that she would never have to use any of those things in a potion-ever.

"Sit," said Snape.

Harry sat while Vesper and Snape remained standing.

"Professor, I really don't see how I am involved here."

"Miss Black I believe I told you to sit. Down!"

Vesper sat.

"Now," Snape began, "Mr. Malfoy has just been to see me with a strange story, Potter. He tells me that he was up by the Shrieking Shack and ran into Weasley-apparently alone."

Harry didn't say anything.

"Mr. Malfoy says that while he was talking to Weasley, a large amount of mud hit him in the head. How do you think that could have happened?"

"I don't know, Sir," said Harry.

Snape continued. "Mr. Malfoy then saw a strange apparition. Can you imagine what that might be, Potter?"

"No, Professor."

"It was your head, Potter; floating in midair."

Silence. Then-

"I think he should go to Madam Pomfrey," Harry said seriously. "If he's seeing things like that-"

"Why was your head in Hogsmeade, Potter?" interrupted Snape. "Your head does not have permission to be in Hogsmeade, nor does any other part of your body." Snape had been slowly walking around his desk as he was talking. Vesper felt very much like a mouse in a snake's den at that moment. Suddenly, Snape was right in front of Harry, their faces very close. "If your head was in Hogsmeade, then so was the rest of your body," he snarled.

"I've been up in Gryffindor Tower, like you told-"

"Can anyone confirm that?"

"I can," Vesper said. "I had left Hogsmeade early and went back up to the Tower and saw Harry. We were leaving to go to the courtyard, since it's such a nice day outside."

"Really?" Snape asked and Vesper knew that he could see through her story. "I was under the impression that you had detention today, Black."

Her stomach dropped. "I finished earlier than expected; I'm a fast writer."

"So," he said, ignoring her. "Everyone including the Minister of Magic is trying to keep the famous Harry Potter safe from Sirius Black. But famous Harry Potter thinks himself better than their rules. Let ordinary people worry about his safety! Famous Harry Potter will do as he pleases with no thought of the consequences.

"How very much alike the two of you are to your fathers," Snape sneered, his eyes glinting madly. Vesper's blood boiled like lava in her veins, and she could tell that things were about to get very ugly. "They too were exceedingly arrogant; strutting about the place thinking they were better than the rest of us…the resemblance is uncanny."

"My dad didn't strut," said Harry. "And nor do I."

"They didn't set much store by the rules either," Snape went on. "Their heads were so swollen-"

"SHUT UP!"

Vesper didn't remember standing nor shouting at her professor, but she had and she didn't regret it. So this was it; this was why Snape hated her-her father. It was so ironic she could have laughed. It truly seemed like all her problems could be linked back to her father. But the injustice of it all! He hated her because of some stupid school-time grudge.

"_What did you say to me, Black?"_

She finally registered the expression on Snape's face. His face was a mad contortion of rage and malice; his eyes flashed dangerously. A flicker of fear briefly flashed through her mind. Would he actually attack a student with a witness around? Judging by the rage that was radiating from him, Vesper would guess yes.

"She told you to shut up about our fathers!" Harry said, coming to her defense. "I know the truth, all right? My dad saved your life! Dumbledore told me! You wouldn't even be here if it weren't for him!"

"And did the dear headmaster tell you of the circumstances in which your father saved me?" Snape asked in a frightfully calm voice. "I would hate for you to get a false impression of your father, Potter. Your saintly father and his friends played a highly amusing joke on me that would have resulted in my death if it weren't for your father getting cold feet at the last minute. Had their prank succeeded, he would have been expelled. He was saving his own skin as much as mine.

"Turn out your pockets, Potter!" he spat suddenly.

But Harry didn't move.

"Turn them out right now or we go to the headmaster! Pull them out!"

Vesper watched as Harry reluctantly pulled out a bag from Zonko's and the Marauder's Map. Snape picked up the Zonko's bag and began examining it.

"Vesper gave them to me," Harry said, "As we were coming down for lunch."

"How very touching," said Snape. "And what is this?" he asked picking up the Map.

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Spare piece of parchment."

"Such an old bit of parchment," said Snape. "What if I just-throw it away?"

His hand moved towards the fire.

Vesper's hands shot to her mouth to cover her gasp and Harry cried out, "No!"

"Hmm…" Snape said. "Is this another gift from Miss Black? Or perhaps directions written in invisible ink or how to get into Hogsmeade without passing the dementors?"

Snape pulled out his wand and spread the map on his desk. "Reveal your secret!"

Nothing happened.

"Show yourself!"

Still nothing.

"Professor Severus Snape, master of this school, commands you to yield the information you conceal!"

And then, like an invisible hand was writing upon the map, words appeared.

**Mr. Moony would like to offer his compliment to Professor Snape and requests that he keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business.**

But it didn't stop there. More writing appeared beneath the first.

**Mr. Prongs agrees with Mr. Moony and would like to add that Professor Snape is an ugly git.**

Vesper couldn't help the snort of laughter. However one look from Snape pushed down any hope that they would get out of here alive. But then, more…

**Mr. Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like that ever became a professor.**

Could this really get any worse? Oh…yes it could.

**Mr. Wormtail bids Professor Snape good day, and advises him to wash his hair, the slimeball.**

Vesper held her breath; waiting for what Snape would do next.

"So…," he said softly. "We'll see about this."

Snape walked around towards the fireplace and grabbed a handful of Floo powder. He threw it into the flickering flames.

"Lupin!" he called. "I want a word."

Her heart sank to the lowest part of her body. Remus would know exactly what was going on and would instantly recognize the map. She had never felt so ashamed in her life, and Remus hadn't even entered the room yet.

"Severus, you called?"

Suddenly very interested in her nails, Vesper didn't look Remus in the eye.

"I certainly did. I have just asked Potter to empty his pockets. He was carrying _this_."

Vesper glanced under her lashed to see Remus studying the map carefully, his face stoical.

"Clearly, it's full of _Dark Magic_," said Snape. "As this is your area of expertise, Lupin, I thought it best to involve you. Where do you think Potter might have gotten such a thing?"

Remus chuckled. "Full of Dark Magic?" he repeated. "This looks to me as though it is just a piece of parchment that insults anyone who reads it. It is certainly not dangerous. I imagine that Harry got it from a joke shop."

"Indeed?" asked Snape. His face was full of rage. Vesper had given up not watching the hidden argument in-between the professors' words. "You don't think he got it _directly from the manufacturers_?"

"You mean Mr. Wormtail or one of these other men?" he said. "Harry, do you know any of these people?"

"No," said Harry quickly.

"Well, there we have it!" said Remus, clapping his hands together. He then turned to Harry and Vesper. "Would you two come with me, I need a word about my vampire essay. Good day, Severus."

Vesper rushed out of the room as fast as she could without looking guilty to Snape. They followed Remus out of the Dungeons all the way to his office on the third floor.

"Professor, I-"

"I do not want to hear explanations, Harry," Remus said shortly. "Now I happen to know that this map was confiscated by Mr. Filch many years ago. I have no idea how it came to be in your possession-" his eyes briefly shifted to Vesper, "and I am astounded that you didn't turn it in. Did it ever occur to the two of you that this could fall into the hands of Sirius Black? Therefore I cannot give this back to you."

"But why did Snape think that I'd gotten it directly from the manufacturers?" asked Harry.

"Because…," Remus hesitated. "Because they would have thought it great fun to lure you out of the castle."

"Do you know them?"

Quite, thought Vesper.

"We've met," he said curtly. "Be warned, I will not cover up for you again, Harry, nor for you Vesper. Harry, your parents gave their lives to save yours and sneaking out of school unprotected with a killer on the loose seems like a pretty poor way to repay them.

"Now, I want you to return to your dormitory immediately, and stay there, do you understand?"

Harry and Vesper both nodded their heads in agreement. Vesper turned around and was almost out the door when-

"Vesper, stay back for a moment; there's something further I wish to discuss with you."

She was so busted.

**AN-Ok so first off I want to say THANK YOU SOOOOOOOOO MUCH! The response to the last chapter was AMAZING! (10 reviews plus a bigillion favs/alerts!) You guys are the best and you mean the world to me!**

**I really am sorry 'bout the wait but school and writer's block kept getting in my way. Hope the extra long chapter sorta makes up for it.**

**So anyways, 5 reviews for the next chapter. You guys (and girls) rock!**

**Love Lora**


	14. Chapter 14 Gryffindor Vs Slytherin

Disclaimer-JK Rowling owns all. Unfortunately.

**Chapter 14 Gryffindor Vs Slytherin**

It was the next day and Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Vesper made their way down to Hagrid's hut for Care of Magical Creatures class. So much had happened that previous afternoon:

"_Remus, I-"_

"_I don't want to hear it, Vesper!" She recoiled from Remus' severe tone. Never in her life had she heard him yell like this before. "This has got to be the stupidest thing you've ever done! Luring your friend out of the castle into direct danger-"_

"_Because running around Hogsmeade with a werewolf isn't dangerous at all!"_

_Vesper instantly regretted her words but her voice remained strong. "Look, Remus, I'm sorry. Look, I had a lapse in judgment the first time but after seeing Black in Hogsmeade…" She sighed. "Had I known that Harry was going yesterday, I would've tried to stop him."_

_Remus pulled her into a warm embrace; his safe, sturdy arms wrapped around her and held her close. "I'm sorry too, Vesper; I shouldn't have yelled so harshly." He pulled away slightly to look her in the eyes. "But I need you to understand the gravity of the situation. Black could have killed Harry many times this year; he could have killed _you_ many times this year. If he had hurt you that time in Hogsmeade-" he paused, and Vesper could've sworn she heard his voice quiver a little. "I would have gone after him and killed him myself. You are the most precious thing to me, Vesper, and if anything _ever_ happened to you, I really don't know what I would do."_

"_I love you, Remus," she said, her eyes swimming with unshed tears._

"_I love you too, Vesper. Now get back to the Tower, I'll see you in class."_

_She turned around and headed for the door. But before she could reach for the handle-_

"_Oh, and starting this summer, you're grounded. Three weeks."_

_Well, it could've been worse_, Vesper reminisced, but the sight of Hagrid's brought about new memories.

_She made her way back to Gryffindor Tower knowing that Remus would be watching the map. When she entered the Fat Lady's corridor she saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione gathered together. Vesper immediately saw the redness and tear stains on Hermione's face. "What did you do now?" she said turning on Ron._

"_It wasn't me; we're good now!" said Ron quickly. "Hermione got a letter from Hagrid."_

"'S all my fault," Hagrid said during their lesson. "Kep' gettin' all tongue-tied an' droppin' me notes. Then Lucius Malfoy stood up an' said his bit an' the Committee did exac'ly what he told 'em…"

As they left class, Vesper could see Malfoy along with Crabbe and Goyle walking ahead of them.

"Did you see him blubbering?"

Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle had been standing at the Entrance to the castle waiting for them.

"Have you ever seen anything so pathetic?" said Malfoy. "And he's supposed to be our teacher!"

Harry, Vesper, and Ron all made to move towards Malfoy, but Hermione got there first.

WHAM! Hermione had punched Malfoy with all her strength. Malfoy staggered, and Crabbe and Goyle just looked confused. Hermione raised her hand again.

"Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul-you _evil_-"

"Hermione," said Ron while he and Harry pulled a struggling Hermione away from Malfoy. They were preoccupied so Vesper took the opportunity to do what she had planned all along. She stalked up to a shocked looking Malfoy and-

SMACK!

Vesper pulled back her hand ignoring the throbbing pain. She turned to see Ron and Harry staring at her with wide eyes.

"What?" Vesper said, confused. Still they kept staring. "Oh, so Hermione can punch Malfoy, but I can't slap him? _I'm_ the irresponsible one!"

They started to laugh and Ron released Hermione.

"You had better beat him in the Quidditch final, Harry!" said Hermione shrilly. "I don't think I could stand it if Malfoy wins!"

The Easter holiday passed in a whirl of work. Vesper felt like she had at least one essay for every class she was taking. Not to mention the fact that Oliver Wood had ordered daily practices and had taken to reminding them that Slytherin was 200 points ahead of them. It was hard to get homework done when Wood was constantly telling her different tactics and maneuvers.

The week before the game was a dangerous time. Scuffles and small fights between the Gryffindors and Slytherins were common in the corridors. Wood insisted that the members of the Quidditch team be escorted everywhere after one Slytherin had nearly tripped Vesper down an entire flight of stairs. The whole of Gryffindor House gladly took it upon themselves to do the job. Harry and Vesper were having a particularly hard time at it since they were the most valuable players on the team-or so their housemates told them.

Finally it was the night before the game. Vesper was so nervous that she couldn't sit still. She had given up and began to pace the floor ten minutes ago. It was a relief when Oliver told the team to go to bed.

Vesper slept surprisingly well that night. Not a single dream had disturbed her sleep and she felt reenergized. She dressed quickly and joined her teammates as they made their way down to the Great Hall. A loud roar of applause coming not only from the Gryffindor table, but from Ravenclaw's and Hufflepuff's as well, greeted them as they entered the Hall. Wood urged them to eat but Vesper's nerves were beginning to settle in. If she, Katie, and Angelina didn't put enough points on the board fast enough then Malfoy could catch the Snitch and Harry wouldn't be able to do anything to stop him. The team eventually gave up on eating and headed out to the locker rooms. Cho Chang called out, "Good luck!" to Harry as they passed by. Vesper had the sudden urge to smack her.

No one spoke as they got changed; the weight of the match pressing down on them. Again, enormous applause greeted them as they walked out onto the pitch.

"Mount your brooms!" said Madam Hooch. "On my whistle! Three…two…one!"

Vesper immediately shot up into the air and grabbed the Quaffle. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Flint trailing closely behind her. She added more speed and shifted her position more to the right. As Vesper came into scoring range she pulled back her arm and-

"Intercepted by Warrington of the Slytherin team, he's tearing up the field-WHAM-a nice Bludger there by George Weasley I think, and the Quaffle is caught by Johnson and SHE SCORES!"

A streak of green flew by Vesper and crashed right into Angelina. She watched as Angelina tried to wriggle her way back into position on her broom. Vesper was seeing red but not for long. Fred chucked his Beater's bat at the back of Flint's head effectively smashing his nose on the broom handle. Madam Hooch awarded penalty shots to both teams. Vesper took the Quaffle with trembling hands and zoomed over to the Slytherin end of the pitch. She stopped at the designated spot for penalty shots, quickly raised her arm and launched the ball through the center golden hoop.

"YES! SHE'S BEATEN THE KEEPER! TWENTY-ZERO GRYFFINDOR!"

Vesper felt light as a feather as the tension lifted from her shoulders. She turned her attention to a still-bleeding Flint, who was getting ready to make his shot.

"Wood's a superb Keeper," said Lee. "Very difficult to pass-YES! I CAN'T BELIEVE HE SAVED IT!"

The game got dirtier as time went on. On the next play, Katie was in possession of the Quaffle when Montague went to grab Katie's head instead of the Quaffle. Gryffindor was awarded another penalty which Katie threw with precision bumping the score thirty to zero. But it wasn't long after that that Slytherin managed to score a goal putting the score at thirty-ten.

Even though being a Chaser was the most dangerous position on a Quidditch team, Vesper had never actively feared for her safety before. And she was right to be. The Beater Bole struck her on her right shoulder with his bat while she had held the Quaffle. George had her back and elbowed Bole in the face. Penalties were awarded to both teams making the score forty-ten.

Katie scored again. Fifty-ten. Then Angelina. Sixty-ten. Vesper caught the Quaffle that Warrington dropped and scored. Seventy-ten. If Harry managed to catch the Snitch now they would win the Cup.

The noise level from the crowd grew and Vesper looked around to see the cause of it. She didn't have to look far. Harry was streaking through the air at an incredible speed. Looking ahead, Vesper saw Malfoy diving after the golden Snitch. She stared on in awe as Harry was only ten feet from Malfoy. Five feet. At his ankles. Neck and neck…

"YES!"

Harry pulled out of his dive, his hand clenched in a fist around the Snitch. Wood managed to make it to Harry first but Vesper was there a second later. She crushed his body to hers and held on tight. They rest of the team joined them in their mid-air hug before slowly descending to the ground and were surrounded by hundreds of spectators. Tears of joy ran down her face, and as Vesper watched Harry get hoisted up on the shoulders of the Weasley twins with the Quidditch Cup in his hands, Vesper felt that maybe, finally, she would be able to produce a Patronus of her own.

**AN- Happy holidays everyone! Hope everyone had a nice Christmas and will have a lovely New Year's. I can't believe that I started this story a year ago and it's nearly done. Only a few more chapters to go. :(**

**Not my best work, but I really am bad at writing Quidditch scenes (you'll notice that I cut out some of the things in the book). It's also a bit short but I wanted this out for the holiday.**

**I might take a bit longer for the next chapter as my exams are in 2 weeks.**

**As always, 5 reviews before the next chapter comes out.**

**Love Lora**


	15. Chapter 15 Off the Edge of the Map

Disclaimer-JK Rowling owns all. Unfortunately.

**Chapter 15 You're Off the Edge of the Map, Mate**

Vesper flopped onto an armchair in the nearly empty Gryffindor common room; exhausted. She had just come from making up her Arithmancy exam (which had been scheduled for the same time as her Transfigurations exam). The questions had been easy enough, but writing out all the different formulas for each probability had taken its toll on Vesper's hand.

The portrait hole swung open and in strode Hermione. Her skin was ashen and a grave expression marred her face.

"Oh, come on, Hermione," Vesper said, trying to lighten her friend's mood. "Your Muggle Studies exam can't have been that bad; your parents are muggles for…what's that?"

Hermione was holding out her hand in front of her, a piece of paper in it. Vesper took it and quickly read:

_Lost appeal. They're going to execute at sunset. Nothing you can do. Don't come down. I don't want you to see._

_Hagrid_

"But they can't!"

"Can't what?"

They turned and saw Ron walking towards them. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Buckbeak lost his appeal," said Hermione. Her voice quivered slightly. "He's going to be executed today at sunset."

Ron slumped into the chair beside Vesper's. "This is terrible."

"Hey!"

All three of them turned to see Harry rushing over. Vesper noted that he was panting and his face was flushed red. "Professor Trelawney-just told me-"

He stopped.

"Buckbeak lost," said Ron weakly. "Hagrid sent a note."

Harry took the note from Ron's outstretched hand. His eyes quickly scanned it.

"We've got to go," he said at once. "We can't just let Hagrid sit there alone waiting for the executioner!"

"Sunset, mate," Ron pointed out. "We aren't allowed out of the castle."

Harry began pacing. "If only I had the Invisibility Cloak…"

"Where is it?" asked Hermione.

"On the third floor in the passageway under the statue of the one-eyed witch," said Harry. "But if Snape sees me anywhere near it I'm dead."

"And how do you open it again?" she asked.

"You tap the hump and say, '_Dissendium_,' but you-Hermione!"

Hermione had gotten to her feet and was out the portrait hole before Harry could finish his sentence.

"She hasn't gone to get it, has she?" Ron asked. Vesper and Harry both shrugged.

Harry looked at Vesper. "I thought you didn't want me sneaking out of the castle?"

Vesper gave a weary sigh. "This is different," she said. "This is for Hagrid, not sweets. Besides, we're just going to Hagrid's hut. It's not like we're sneaking off school grounds."

Hermione returned ten minutes later pulling the silvery cloak from out of her robe.

"Hermione, I don't know what's gotten into you!" said Ron, astounded. "First you walk out on Trelawney and then you hit Malfoy. I-"

Hermione beamed, a light blush gracing her cheeks.

After dinner, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Vesper hid inside a room outside of the entrance hall and waited for the last of the footsteps to die down.

"I think the coast is clear," Hermione whispered. "Let's put on the cloak."

They tiptoed across the hall and out the front door of the castle. The sun had begun its decent into the western sky, highlighting the top of the Forbidden Forest with golden rays.

They knocked on the door and waited a minute before Hagrid opened the door.

"Hagrid, it's us," whispered Harry. "Let us in and we can take the cloak off."

"Yeh shouldn't 'ave come," he said, but he stood aside and let them in. Harry pulled the cloak off.

"Where's Buckbeak, Hagrid?" Vesper asked hesitantly.

"I-I took him outside," said Hagrid. "Got him tied up in me pumpkin patch. Though he oughta be in the fresh air before…well…" he trailed off.

"Can't Dumbledore do anything?" asked Harry.

"Dumbledore's done all he can do," Hagrid said. "He's comin' down, yeh know? Said he wante' teh be here fer me...when it happens. Great man, Dumbledore."

"We'll be here too, Hagrid," Hermione said firmly.

"You four will do no such thing!" said Hagrid. "Do yeh think I want you seein' somethin' like that? No, it's best yeh get goin' back to teh castle. Oh, but before yeh leave, Ron-"

Hagrid walked over to the kitchen counter and grabbed a small tin. He stuck his hand inside and pulled out a small mass of brown fur.

"Scabbers!" exclaimed Ron, surprise written on his face. "You're alive!" He went to grab the struggling rat from Hagrid's hands. But even being in his owner's hands didn't calm the rat down; he remained wriggling and squirming to get free. Scabbers didn't look so good from what little Vesper could see of him. The patches of missing fur were even more pronounced and Scabbers was thinner than Vesper had ever seen.

"Bett'r keep a closer eye on your pets, Ron," Hagrid said sternly.

A loud _crack_ made Vesper jump. She looked around for the source of the noise. The jar sitting on the table had shattered. Hermione picked up a small rock laying on the table. Vesper looked at it in confusion. "How did-?"

"Ow!"

Harry was rubbing the back of his head. He looked out the window, trying to see what had happened.

Harry turned back to them. "Dumbledore and Fudge are on their way down. We have to go."

"I'll let yeh out the back," said Hagrid.

They followed him to the door and into his garden. Buckbeak was a few yards away laying amongst Hagrid's pumpkin patch. His feathers were a bit ruffled and he was restlessly fidgeting every few seconds.

"Go on now," Hagrid said softly. "Get goin'."

They didn't move.

"Hagrid, we can't-"

"We won't let them-"

"We'll tell them what really happened-"

"They can't kill him-"

"Go!" said Hagrid fiercely. "It's bad enough without you lot in trouble. Now go quick. Don' listen…"

And he went back into his cabin as a knocking began on his door.

Realizing that they would be in the middle of a murder scene if they didn't get going, Vesper pulled them out of their horrified trance. She grabbed the cloak from Harry and threw it over themselves.

The sky was much darker now than it had been merely half an hour ago. The sun had sunk behind the trees of the forest painting the sky purple, and grey, and darkest blue. Tiny stars were starting to rise with the fall of the sun.

"Please, let's hurry," whispered Hermione as they started walking back up the hill towards the castle. "I don't think I could bear it…" Vesper silently agreed with Hermione's plea. Butterflies started in her stomach, and the feeling of pure horror made her want to be sick.

But Ron stopped dead, halting their progression.

"Ron, please!" Vesper said desperately.

"It's Scabbers! He won't-_stay still!_" Ron struggled to get the frantically squirming rat into his robe's pocket. "Scabbers, it's me, you idiot! It's Ron!"

In the distance, a closing door could be heard and men's voices.

"Oh, please, Ron, let's move," Hermione begged. "They're going to do it!"

"I can't hold him-Scabbers, stay put!"

Then, without any warning, there was the swish and thud of an axe.

Hermione swayed a bit on her feet. "They did it. I can't believe they did it."

Tears prickled in her eyes but Vesper wiped them away before they could fall. She would allow herself to grieve the loss of an innocent creature once they were back in the safety of the common room.

Harry was looking sorrowfully towards Hagrid's cabin. Vesper took hold of his sleeve and gave a small tug. "We have to get back to the castle."

He shook his head. "But Hagrid-"

"-will be in worse trouble if they find out we saw," said Ron. "C'mon."

They didn't bother with the cloak anymore. Darkness had nearly encompassed the entire grounds, hiding them from sight.

"Scabbers, keep still," Ron hissed. The rat was still struggling against his owner's hold. "What's the matter with you, you stupid rat? OUCH! He bit me!"

"Ron, be quiet!" Hermione whispered. 'Fudge'll be out any minute!"

"Scabbers-NO!"

Scabbers had managed to weasel his way out of Ron's grasp and started to scamper away. A blur of orange rushed past Vesper's feet heading straight for the escaped rat.

"Crookshanks!" moaned Hermione. "Stop! Bad cat!"

Before any of them could stop him, Ron was off chasing after the animals. The other three had no choice but to follow him.

They hadn't gotten too far before Ron made a spectacular dive and grabbed Scabbers. Vesper made a sudden stop to keep from tripping over Ron's body lying on the ground; Harry and Hermione stopping beside her. Ron stood while he was once again trying to get Scabbers into his robes.

"Come on you bloody rat! Hold st-…" He trailed off; eyes wide and face as white as the moon. Ron lifted a shaking finger to where Harry, Hermione, and Vesper stood.

"Run!" Ron cried. "It's the grim!"

Vesper turned and met the grey eyes of her father in disguise. She couldn't move; fear paralyzed every nerve in her body. Her heart wracked against her rib cage so hard that Vesper wouldn't be surprised if there were bruises there tomorrow…if they were even alive tomorrow.

Ugh, she needed to stop thinking like that! If they were going to live to see tomorrow, which they _were_, then she needed to stop staring at him like a ninny and put her intelligence and Quidditch reflexes to good use.

Something about her demeanor must have changed because before she could even reach for her wand, Vesper was pushing Harry and Hermione out of the way as the dog charged towards them. The dog leapt, and tackled Ron to the ground. Vesper watched with her two remaining friends in horror as the dog began dragging Ron the base of the Whomping Willow and soon vanished.

"Oh," Hermione wailed. "What are we going to do, what are we going to do, what are we going to _do_?"

"We've got to go after him," said Harry. "But how are we going to get past the tree?"

Vesper noted the orange cat dart past the branches of the tree that prevented Harry from going any closer to the tree. Crookshanks made it to the base of the tree and delicately placed his front paw unto a knot that jutted out from the trunk.

Instantly the violent branches were calm and still.

"C'mon," Vesper said, pulling out her wand. "Let's go."

The others followed suit and took out their wands as well. Vesper made to go first, but Harry brushed past her, oblivious to the danger that he was placing himself in. He crawled into the passage, Vesper following close behind. The passageway was very small; not even enough room to stand straight up. They made their way as quickly as possible while hunched over.

"Where does this tunnel come out?" Hermione asked breathlessly.

"I don't know," said Harry. "It's marked on the map, but it eventually runs off the edge. Did Fred and George ever mention it, Vesper?"

"They haven't," she answered. "They never got to explore this one since the tree was planted on top of it. I'm not sure where it goes." Though she had a pretty good hunch…

Sometimes it got so small that Harry, Hermione, and Vesper had to crawl. Vesper briefly wondered how the Marauders had fit in this tunnel, when the slopping hill that they had been climbing for so long began to even out. A patch of dim light came through a small opening.

It was a very dark and decrepit sitting room. Layers of dust caked every surface; the furniture was toppled over and destroyed; lifeless wallpaper peeled away from the walls. All the windows were boarded.

"I-I think we're in the Shrieking Shack," whispered Hermione, her voice breathless with fright.

There was a creak overhead; someone was moving upstairs. Vesper moved silently towards a crumbling staircase. She could feel Harry and Hermione right behind her. When they reached the landing, a loud moan coming from the nearest room greeted them.

Ron was lying on a large four-poster bed; his leg propped up on a dusty pillow. Harry and Hermione rushed to him, but Vesper slowly scanned the room. Searching.

"Ron, are you okay?"

"Where's the dog?"

"Not a dog," Ron groaned. "It's a trap, Harry. He's an Animagus."

Hermione's gasp alerted Vesper that they had turned to see the meaning behind Ron's words; that they had saw what Vesper had looked for since setting foot in the room: the man in the corner.

He was nothing like the man in her pictures. He was pale, unnaturally so. Black strands of hair hung tangled and dirty framing his gaunt face. His yellow teeth were bared in a grin; grey eyes glinting.

Vesper took a deep breath and steeled herself.

"Hello, father."

**AN-Ok this chapter would've been out nearly 2 weeks ago but my computer decided to crash before I could post, so I had to rewrite the ENTIRE THING! Ugh!**

**Anyway, hope this makes up for my suck-ish last chapter :)**

**Remember, 5 reviews!**

**Love Lora**


	16. Chapter 16 The Rat

Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 16 The Rat**

"_Expelliarmus!_" croaked Black, pointing Ron's wand at them. He easily caught Vesper's, Harry's, and Hermione's wands as they soared through the air.

"I'd thought you'd come and help your friend," Black said, grinning. "Your father would've done the same for me." He turned to Vesper. "I must thank you, Vesper, for not going to get Remus once you saw me…it makes thing much easier for me."

Anger surged within her. "My mistake," she spat. "I should've learned from the first time in the forest." Oh why hadn't she thought to go get a teacher? _Oh, right,_ she thought dryly, _because I'm a bloody heroic Gryffindor. That's why_.

"If you want to kill Harry, you have to kill us too!" shouted Ron from over on the bed.

"No," Black said. "Only one will die tonight."

"Then it'll be you!" Harry roared, and he rushed past Vesper and tackled Black to the ground.

All use of magical ability seemed to have been forgotten. Harry began furiously punching and kicking any part of the older man he could find while Black was furiously trying to get Harry off. They fell into the wall and wrestled around on the floor.

Vesper couldn't believe her eyes. She stared, stunned. It wasn't until a bright flash of magic that she started to move to pull Harry away from the fight. He struggled against her hold, and Hermione soon joined Vesper, pulling him away from Black. Vesper had never seen him like this, even when he had attacked her.

Harry shoved Hermione and Vesper aside, his wand raised and pointing at Black. He must've pried it free from Black during the fight.

Black didn't look fazed by the wand pointed at his heart. Instead, he looked almost…amused.

"Going to kill me, Harry?" Black taunted.

Harry's wand shook slightly. "You kill my parents," he whispered.

Black's expression changed very quickly. With the mention of James and Lily Potter, his face was overcome with grief and longing. Vesper didn't understand. Did that mean he regretted what he did?

"I don't deny it," said Black quietly. "But if you knew the whole story-"

"We know the whole story!" Vesper shouted. "And even if we didn't, you killed innocent people for no reason! Nothing can justify that!"

He looked desperately at her and opened his mouth to speak, but a sound interrupted him before he could answer.

Footsteps could be heard moving around downstairs.

"HELP!" screamed Hermione. "WE"RE UP HERE! SIRIUS BLACK-_QUICK_!"

The footsteps became hurried, thundering up the staircase. The door burst open, and Vesper turned to see Remus gaping at the scene before him. He looked at Ron lying on the bed, Hermione standing near the door, to Harry, wand still raised to Black, over to herself, flanking the black-haired boy, and lastly to Black on the floor.

Remus raised his wand. "_Expelliarmus!_" he cried. Harry's wand flew out of his hand as well as the others that Black still had in his hand.

He pointed his wand towards Black. "Finally, the flesh reflects the madness within," Remus said voice tense.

Black smirked. "Well, you'd know all about the madness within, wouldn't you Remus?"

A pause. Then-

"Where is he, Sirius?"

Vesper looked from her godfather to Black in confusion. She didn't understand! What did Remus think he was doing disarming Harry? Black she could comprehend, but why Harry? And what did Remus mean, _'Where is he'_. Who was he talking about?

Very slowly, Black raised his hand and pointed at Ron.

"But then…"Remus muttered, staring at Black, "…why hasn't he shown himself before now? Unless-" Remus' eyes widened in realization, though at what Vesper couldn't grasp. "-unless he was the one…you switched…without telling me?"

Black nodded.

"Professor," Harry said loudly, reminding Remus that they were in the room, "what's-?"

Harry didn't finish his question; he was too busy watching Remus lower his wand and embracing Black like a brother.

Vesper's mind was buzzing. Something wasn't right; she knew it. Why would Remus have his wand to Black one moment and hug him the next? It didn't add up. If Remus had been working for Black why would he bother training Harry, or why would he have scolded them for not being safe? The death of Lily and James Potter had deeply affected her godfather. She hadn't been there to witness it herself, but Vesper knew the pain was there. On the rare occasion he would tell her about his days in school, there would always be a look of longing in his eyes. The Marauders had been his only friends; his attitude towards the man responsible for destroying those friendships wouldn't change for anything less than astronomical. Something big must have been established during that brief conversation to change Remus' mind. It had to of. If not-

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" Hermione screamed. She walked towards Remus, distrust on her face. "You-you-"

"Hermione-" said Remus, hands up in mock surrender.

"-you and him!"

"Hermione, please calm down-"

"I never said anything!" Hermione shrieked. "I've been covering up for you!"

"Hermione, please, listen to me!" shouted Remus. "I can explain!"

"I trusted you," Harry screamed. "And all this time you've been his friend!"

Remus shook his head. "You're wrong. I haven't been Sirius' friend…but I am now. Please-"

"NO!" Hermione screamed. She turned to Harry. "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too! He's a-"

"Don't you _dare_ finish that sentence, Hermione," Vesper spat. She would not have her godfather's reputation ruined for no reason.

Hermione glared at her and announced loudly, "He's a werewolf! That's why he's been missing classes."

"You swore!" cried Vesper. She was seeing red. She began to march over to Hermione, but Remus kept her from going anywhere.

Remus smiled grimly. "Not up to your usual standards, Hermione; only one out of three correct. I have not been helping Sirius into the castle, nor do I want Harry dead…" he hesitated, "but I will not deny that I am a werewolf. How long have you known?"

"Since Professor Snape set the essay," Hermione said. "I was going to go to Professor McGonagall when Vesper told me that the staff already knew."

"The teachers knew?" Ron asked incredulous. "Dumbledore knew you were a werewolf and he still hired you? Is he mad?"

"You know, it's because of people like you that he can't get a job!" shouted Vesper. "He's been the best Defense teacher we've had, and you'd turn your back on him just because of his condition!"

"Enough," said Remus sternly. "Most teachers accepted or at least tolerated Dumbledore's decision of hiring me. Others, however, were more hard-pressed in believing me trustworthy-"

"AND DUMBLEDORE WAS WRONG!" yelled Harry. "You've been helping him all the time!"

Vesper rolled her eyes. Couldn't they see what she saw?

"Of course he hasn't," she said. "If he was helping Black, you'd be dead by now. If he was helping Black why would he be upset that you were sneaking out Hogwarts, or why wouldn't he have killed us all as soon as he came into the room?"

"He could be trying to trick us, Vesper; you don't know him!"

"I'd like to think that I know my own godfather, Harry," Vesper said coldly.

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Vesper cut him off.

"Save it, Harry. I'm not discussing this now."

"But how-"

"Look," Remus interrupted. He threw Harry, Ron, and Hermione their wands, and handed Vesper's to her since she was standing next to him. He then pocketed his own wand. "There. You're armed, and we aren't. Now will you listen?"

"If you haven't been helping him," Harry said, jerking his head in Black's direction, "how did you know where he was?"

"The Marauder's Map," said Remus. "I was looking at it in my office when-"

"You know how to work it?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Of course I do," Remus said. "I helped write it. Mooney was my friends' old nickname for me at school. The point is, I was watching it carefully. I had a feeling that you would be sneaking out of the castle to go see Hagrid." He ruffled Vesper's hair affectionately. "And I was right, wasn't I? Even with the cloak on, Harry-"

"How do you know about the cloak?"

Remus waved his hand impatiently. "The number of times James used it to disappear…Anyway, even if you use the Invisibility Cloak, you still show up on the map.

"I watched as the four of you made your way down to Hagrid's hut. But on the way back, you were joined by someone else."

"No we weren't," Hermione said. "We were alone."

"I thought the map had malfunctioned," Remus continued. "But it had to be true; the map never lies. He had to be with you."

"No one was with us!" said Harry.

"Remus, what are you talking about?" Vesper asked, confused once again. "It was just the four of us."

Still he continued on, ignoring them. "And then I saw a dot labeled Sirius Black moving towards you. He collided with you, and pulled two of you into the Whomping Willow."

"One of us!" said Ron.

"Do you think I could have a look at that rat?" Remus asked.

"What does Scabbers have to do with anything?" asked Ron.

"That's not a rat," Black said evenly.

"What d'you-of course he's a rat!"

"No he's not," said Remus, shaking his head. "He's an animagus by the name of Peter Pettigrew."

"You're both mental!"

"That's absolutely ridiculous!"

"You're crazy!" shouted Harry. "Pettigrew's dead. You killed him." He pointed at Black.

"I meant to," snarled Black, "but somehow Peter managed to get the best of me…not this time though."

He went to lunge for the rat, but Remus grabbed him from the waist.

"Sirius, NO! They-have- a right-to-know-everything!" Remus panted. "Think of Harry and Vesper! You owe them the truth! Please just wait one more minute-"

"I"VE DONE MY WAITING!" Black cried. "Twelve years of it…in Azkaban. Say what you wish, Remus, but make it fast. I want to commit the murder I was imprisoned for." He pulled himself from Remus' grasp and sat on the bed.

Remus turned to her. "Vesper, you've been awfully quiet; is there something you'd like to say?"

Vesper nodded. "I'm confused. You know I trust you, Remus, but I need more details on how you could possibly come to the conclusion that Peter Pettigrew is somehow still alive and has been hiding for years as a rat. There are witnesses that say they saw Pettigrew die. I trust the map, but I'll need more proof before I'm convinced of anything."

"Just like her mother," she heard Black mutter. "Vesper," he said louder, pushing himself off the bed. He stood before her, his hand grasping her face forcing her to look at him. His hands were rough with calluses, but his touch was softer than any feather. He cradled her face with the utmost care; like she was a delicate china doll that would break at the slightest hint of pressure or force.

"Please," Black continued, and Vesper was overwhelmed by the desperation in his voice. "You know what I am; think of the others. There must have been photos somewhere? Look at the rat!"

Vesper turned and looked at the rat in Ron's hand. Scabbers was still struggling to get loose. Her mind was reeling. What did him being an Animagus have to do with Ron's pet? But what had he said; '_think of the others_'? The only other Animagus that Black would've known would be his friends at school, James Potter and…Peter Pettigrew.

Her eyes widened in realization. Of course! Peter's animagus form was a rat! But Pettigrew was supposed to be dead…wasn't he? The map said that Peter Pettigrew was here with them in the Shrieking Shack, and then map was never wrong…but if Pettigrew _was_ alive, why did he feel the need to fake his own death and blame Black?

"I don't…" she began, then trailed off. She had been subconsciously moving closer to Ron and Scabbers as she had been thinking. He was squirming in Ron's tight hold, but one of his front paws was poking out from in between Ron's fingers. Vesper wasn't sure why, but her eyes seemed drawn to the rat's paw. A paw that was missing one of its toes-

_All they could find of Pettigrew was his finger…_

Black had supposedly cast a spell that had blown up half the street completely destroying Pettigrew's body except for his one finger. If Pettigrew hadn't died because of the explosion, then how did…_He cut it off himself_, she thought, and began pacing the room as the facts began to come together_. He faked the whole thing! But then what could be that bad to fake your own death?_

Vesper stopped in mid-step. Pettigrew supposedly died the morning after James and Lily Potter were killed. Everyone thought he had died because he confronted Black. Why would a confrontation about the Potters' death cause him to fake his death and not reappear after Black was placed in Azkaban unless-

"It was him," Vesper concluded. She turned to her father, her eyes shining bright. "You're innocent!"

Her father smiled, and Vesper could see a trace of the man from her photographs. There was light in his sunken eyes, and appeared nearly ten years younger. Hesitantly, he reached out for her hand, and she willingly gave it, the weight comforting and somehow familiar.

"You're mental!" Ron shouted again.

"Vesper, you can't honestly believe them?" asked Hermione. "I mean, I know they're your family, but this is crazy!"

Harry remained silent.

"I know it seems ridiculous," she said, speaking more to him than the others, "but I'm sure that once Remus explains, you'll be able to reach my conclusion. His thought process should be close enough to my own."

Remus nodded, and took his cue to begin.

"Everyone thought that Sirius had killed Peter that morning," he said. "I even believed it myself until tonight. When I saw Peter's name on the map with you tonight, I knew he must be alive. The map never lies."

"Get a move on, Remus," Sirius said annoyed from where they were standing.

"I need your help, Sirius," said Remus. "I only know the beginning of…"

A loud creak from behind made him pause. A moment later the door to the room swung open of its own accord.

"This place is haunted," said Ron.

Remus shook his head. "It really isn't. The rumors were created because of me. The Shrieking Shack is where I came once a month for my transformation. The moans and screams heard by the villagers were all made by me."

Remus sighed. "I was bitten when I was very young. My parents didn't believe that I would ever be able to attend school. Other parents wouldn't want a werewolf around their children.

"But then Dumbledore became headmaster. He was sympathetic, and thought that as long as certain precautions were taken, there would be no reason for me not to come to school. I had told you, Harry, that the Whomping Willow was planted the year I came to Hogwarts. In truth, the tree was planted because I came to Hogwarts. This house, the tunnel-they were all built for my purpose. Every month I was taken out of the castle and brought here to transform.

"Apart from my transformation, I was happier than I had ever been. For the first time, I had friends: Sirius Black…Peter Pettigrew…and your father, Harry…James Potter."

Vesper had never heard Remus speak in such detail about his childhood before. She stood listening to him with close attention.

"I made up numerous stories to try to keep my condition a secret from them," he continued. "I was terrified that they would leave me if they ever found out the truth. But of course, they worked out the truth." Remus smiled. "Imagine my surprise when instead of abandoning me as I thought they would, they began work to help me. They all became Animagi.

"It took nearly three years of intense training and preparation; becoming Animagi is no easy feat for even an adult wizard and here were three teenagers attempting it on their own! Finally, in our fifth year they managed it."

"But how did that help you?" Hermione asked.

"They kept me company," Remus explained. "As humans, it would be extremely dangerous to be anywhere near me. But as animals, they were safe and they could keep me company. We would go roaming about the grounds and the village; that's how we came to discover so much about the school and the grounds and what led us to create the Marauder's Map. We each signed it using our nicknames. Sirius is Padfoot. Peter is Wormtail. James was Prongs."

"What was-" Harry started to ask, but was cut off by Hermione.

"That was really dangerous, though!" she said. "What if someone had gotten bitten?"

"The thought still haunts me," said Remus heavily. "There were many near misses. I still feel guilty about betraying Dumbledore's trust. I broke important safety rules so that I could have a bit of fun. And I haven't changed. I never told Dumbledore about Sirius being an Animagus because I was too cowardly to tell him that I'd betrayed his trust. In a way, Snape's been right about me all along."

Sirius tightened his hold on Vesper's hand. "Snape?" he asked harshly. "What's he got to do with anything?"

"He teaches here," she answered. "Hates the lot of us, too."

"Professor Snape went to school with us," said Remus. "He's been telling Dumbledore all year that I was letting Sirius into the castle, and that I cannot be trusted. You see…Sirius played a trick on him that nearly killed Snape while we were at school."

"Served him right," Sirius sneered. "Always poking his nose where it didn't belong…trailing us, trying to get us expelled."

"Severus was very interested in where I went each month," continued Remus. "We were in the same year and we, uh, didn't like each other very much. He especially hated James. Jealous, I think. Anyway, Sirius thought it would be-amusing-to tell him that if he pressed the knot at the base of the Whomping Willow, he could then follow me. Snape tried it of course, and followed the tunnel. Luckily, James had heard of what Sirius had done and was able to stop Snape just in time. He hadn't, Snape would've met a fully formed werewolf. He saw me though, and Dumbledore forbade him to ever say anything."

Vesper looked up at her father. "It always comes down to you, doesn't it?"

He smirked at her. "Seems that way," he said simply.

"So that's why Snape doesn't like you," said Harry, "because he thought you were in on the joke?"

"That's right," a voice sneered behind them. Vesper turned, and suddenly there was Snape, Invisibility Cloak in hand, his wand pointing directly at Remus.

**AN-Super long chapter! Yay!**

**Ok, so who knew that writing two research papers at the same time would be so time consuming! Gah, it's absolute torture! They're the reason this chapter took so long.**

**Anyway, hope the long chapter makes up for a longer wait :) I also hope that Vesper's epiphany was clear and made sense. I really wanted to capture her entire thought process, which I'm praying looks realistic and logical.**

**Thanks to everyone for all the reviews and alerts/favs. You have no idea how happy they make me.**

**5 reviews before the next chapter comes out, and boy will it be a doozy!**

**Love Lora**


	17. Chapter 17 Truth Will Out

Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 17 Truth Will Out**

As Snape spoke, everyone sprung to attention; Hermione had let out a shriek of surprise, and Harry gave a great jump, like he had been shocked. Her father pulled her protectively closer to him, though he did not look at her. His eyes were like steel, glaring at the intruder.

"You're wondering how I found you?" Snape said, eyes glistening with triumph. "I had been to you office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion this evening, so I took along a gobletful. Lucky for me that I did. There, lying on your desk was a certain map. A single glance told me all I needed to know."

"Severus-" Remus began, but Snape interrupted.

"Vengeance is sweet," he continued. "How I hoped that I would be the one to catch you. You see, I've told the headmaster time and time again that you were helping your old friend into the castle, and here's the proof."

"Brilliant, Snape," said Sirius mockingly. "Once again you've put your keen and penetrating mind to the task and as usual come to the wrong conclusion."

Suddenly Vesper felt herself being shoved roughly into Harry. He steadied her, and she looked for the cause of such action. She didn't have to look far. Snape had come at her father and held him at wandpoint. Sirius was still smirking at him.

"Give me a reason, I beg you," growled Snape.

"Severus, don't be a fool," Remus intervened.

"He can't help it. It's habit by now."

"Sirius, be quiet!"

"Be quiet yourself, Remus!"

Snape smirked. "Listen to the two of you, quarrelling like an old married couple."

Sirius sneered at him. "Why don't you run along and play with your chemistry set?"

Snape dug his wand further into Sirius' throat. "I could do it, you know? But why deny the Dementors, they're so longing to see you. Enough to give you a little kiss I daresay?"

Vesper saw a tremble run through her father.

"P-Professor Snape?"

Hermione took a hesitant step forward. "Maybe it-it wouldn't hurt to hear what they have to say, w-would it?"

"Miss Granger," said Snape, letting go of Sirius. "You, Weasley, and Potter are facing suspension from this school for being out-of-bounds with a convicted murderer and a werewolf, and you, Black-"

She shrank back in fear at his menacing tone.

"You are once again facing expulsion and shipment to Azkaban," he spat, "a habit you seem intent on making. Like father, like daughter, I suppose."

"Don't you dare talk to my daughter that way, _Snivellus_!" Sirius roared. "I'll come with you to the castle so long as that boy-" he pointed at Ron, "-brings his rat."

"I doubt we'll have to go all the way to the castle," Snape said silkily. "The dementors are very eager to see you. Very eager indeed."

"Severus," Remus tried again. "Please. You've got to hear us out!"

_BANG!_

Thick chords of rope burst from Snape's wand and wound themselves around Remus. Unable to keep his balance, he fell to the floor, helpless.

"Come on, all of you," Snape barked. "I'll drag the werewolf. Maybe the Dementors will have a kiss for him too."

This was very bad. Vesper knew that if they left the room with Snape not only would she really be shipped off to Azkaban for real, but her father and godfather's lives would be forfeit. That could not happen; she would not let it. But how?

Harry quickly dashed to the doorway, blocking Snape's path.

That would work.

"Get out of my way, Potter, you're in enough trouble already," snarled Snape. "I just saved your life, you should be on bended knee thanking me! You would have been well served if they had killed you, and just like your father you would've died too arrogant to believe your faith in the Black family might have been mistaken! Now, get out of my way of I will make you. GET OUT OF MY WAY, POTTER!"

Snape raised his wand at Harry, and she reacted instantly. "_Expelliarmus_!" Vesper cried, but hers wasn't the only voice. There was a great bust of light, and Snape was soaring through the air. He crashed into the wall with a loud _thunk_, and fell onto the ground, unconscious, blooding oozing from his head.

No one made a sound.

"Bloody hell, I've wanted to do that for forever!" said Vesper, breaking the silence.

Hermione wasn't amused.

"Vesper, this is serious!" she cried. "We attacked a teacher…We attacked a teacher…oh we are going to be in so much trouble!"

Vesper noticed Remus struggling against the ropes Snape had bound him with. She quickly bent down to untie him. He straightened up rubbing his wrists.

"Thank you, Vesper," he said. "Now, I believe it is time we offered you some proof. Ronald, would you please give me Peter?"

Ron held the rat closer to his chest.

"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say that he broke out of Azkaban to get hold of Scabbers? And even if Pettigrew could turn into a rat-there are millions of rats-how is he supposed to know which one he's after if he's been in Azkaban?"

"You know, he's right," said Remus, turning to Sirius. "How did you know where he was hiding?"

Sirius reached into his robes and pulled out a worn looking copy of The Daily Prophet. He pointed to the picture on the front cover. It was the picture of the Weasleys on their trip to Egypt. Pettigrew was sitting on Ron's shoulder.

"Here," said Sirius. "Fudge gave me the paper on his last inspection of Azkaban. There was Peter right there on the cover. Even after all these years I could still tell it was him. The caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts…to where Harry and Vesper were…"

"My God," Remus breathed. "His front toe is missing…so simple…so brilliant…he cut it off himself."

Sirius nodded. "Just before he transformed and blew the street to bits. After I had cornered him, he started yelling about how I had killed James and Lily. Then, before I could curse him, he blew the street apart and scurried down into the sewers."

"I assume you already know that all they could find of Peter was his finger," said Remus, looking over to Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

"Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat!" said Ron. "He's been in my family for-"

"Twelve years," Sirius cut in. "A curiously long life for a common garden rat. But he's not looking too good now, is he?"

"He's been scared by that mad cat!" said Ron, nodding towards Crookshanks.

Harry frowned. "He was looking ill before he met Crookshanks, though."

"The cat isn't mad," said Sirius. "He figured out what I was and has been trying to help me all year. He stole that list of passwords for me, and told me about the sheets that Peter had bloodied. Well, faking his own death had worked once before…"

"And why did he fake his own death?" Harry asked furiously. "Because he knew that you were going to kill him just like you killed my parents?"

"Harry-" Vesper started.

"And now he's come to finish him off?"

"Yes, I have."

"_Dad!_"

"Then I should've let Snape take you!"

"Harry!" she cried. "Please, don't you see? We had the story backwards. It was Pettigrew who betrayed your parents. It was Dad who tracked Pettigrew down."

"That's not true!" yelled Harry. "He was their Secret-Keeper! HE KILLED THEM!"

Sirius looked at Harry. "Harry…I as good as killed them. I persuaded Lily and James into making Peter their Secret-Keeper at the last minute. I thought it was the perfect diversion; I would've been the obvious choice as Secret-Keeper, Voldemort would never have suspected that it was actually Peter.

"The night they died, I was supposed to check on Peter. When I got to his hiding place, and he wasn't there, I knew something was wrong. I headed straight for your parents' house. And when I saw the destroyed house, their bodies…I realized what Peter had done…what I had done…

"I was now afraid for my own family; it had been almost half an hour since I'd left home. I-"

His voice broke. Vesper walked towards him, a horrible feeling in her stomach.

"That's how Mum died," she said, her voice devoid of emotion. "He came when you left and killed her. I've always wondered how…"

"It wasn't him," her dad said, regaining his voice. "Whoever broke into the house didn't know you had been born, otherwise you wouldn't have been left alive. I arrived at the house to find Aurors everywhere. You were already placed into the Ministry's custody by then."

"That's enough," Remus said. "Let us prove our story to you. Give me that rat! If he really is a normal rat this won't hurt him at all."

Ron hesitated, but handed the rat over. Remus grabbed it, and held it tightly in one hand. Sirius had taken Snape's wand from him. He held it with determination on his face.

"Ready?" asked Remus. "On three. One-two-THREE!"

There was a blinding flash of light, and then-

There was a very short man, barely taller than Vesper was. His red hair was balding and patched in the places where it still remained. He looked to have been plump at one point in his life, but seemed to have lost a large amount of weight in a short amount of time. His pointed nose and small watery eyes were a prominent feature of his rat for that lingered.

"Hello, Peter," Remus said, his voice light and pleasant. "Long time, no see."

"R-Remus? S-Sirius?" said Pettigrew, his voice barely more than a squeak. "My old friends!"

His eyes shifted to the door one second before he dashed towards it. Remus and Sirius quickly blocked his way and shoved him further inside the room.

"We've been having a little chat, Peter," Remus continued like nothing had happened, "about the night James and Lily were killed."

"Remus," gasped Pettigrew. "You…you don't believe him, do you? He-he tried to kill me, Remus! He's come to try and kill me again! He killed Lily and James and now he's after me…You've got to help me, Remus!"

"No one is killing anyone until some things are sorted out," said Remus, giving a pointed look at Sirius.

"Sorted out?" squeaked Pettigrew. "I knew it; I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for it for twelve years!"

"You knew he would break out of Azkaban when no one else has ever done it?" Remus asked.

"He has dark powers we can only dream of," Pettigrew said. "I expect He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"

"Voldemort teach me tricks?" Sirius said incredulously. "Admit it Peter, you weren't hiding from me; you were hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. They aren't very happy with you, are they? After all, it was on your information that Voldemort went to the Potters', the place where he met his downfall. And not all of his supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they?"

Pettigrew looked very flustered. "Don't…no clue what you're talking about. Remus, surely you don't believe this?"

"It's hard to imagine why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat," said Remus.

"It was out of fear!" Pettigrew said. "If Voldemort's supporters came after me, it was because I put their best man in Azkaban-the spy, Sirius Black!"

Sirius' face became twisted with rage.

"How dare you?" he sneered. "I, a spy for Voldemort? I was never the one that hid behind the skirts of wizards better than me! That was you, Peter, always looking for big friends. It used to be me and Remus…and James…"

"Me, a spy…out of your mind…I never-"

"It was only because of my suggestion that Lily and James made you Secret-Keeper," hissed Sirius. "You must have been so proud when you told Voldemort that you could hand him the Potters."

Pettigrew's eyes kept shifting towards the door and windows. Vesper's grip on her wand tightened.

"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione in a small voice. "Can I ask a question?"

"Certainly, Hermione."

"Well, if this man has been sleeping in the same room as Harry for three years, why hasn't he tried to hurt Harry before now?"

"Exactly! Thank you! Why should I ever hurt-"

Pettigrew was silenced with a look from Remus.

"You never did anything unless there was something in it for you," Sirius said. "Why should you commit a murder under the nose of Albus Dumbledore for a wizard who'd lost all his power? You'd want to make sure he was the biggest bully on the playground before you made a move. That's why you stayed with a magic family; to keep an ear open for news."

"Um-Mr. Black-Sirius?" said Hermione.

Sirius looked stunned at her formal address.

"If you don't mind," Hermione continued, "how did you escape from Azkaban if you didn't use Dark Magic?"

"I would transform into my Animagus form," he said. "It helped when things became too much. Dementors can't see; they feel their way around people by their emotions. They can't feel animal emotions, so they just thought I was losing my mind like everyone else. The only reason I didn't was because I knew I was innocent. It wasn't a happy feeling, so the Dementors couldn't take it away. It kept me sane and knowing who I was; it kept me from losing my powers.

"Once I saw that Peter was at Hogwarts, and that he was a danger to Harry, I knew I had to leave. It became an obsession; a burning fire that the Dementors couldn't touch. One night when my food was brought in, I slipped between the bars as a dog. I swam back to the mainland and journeyed to Hogwarts. I've been staying in the forest only coming out to see the Quidditch games. You fly as well as your father, Harry…"

Sirius looked pleadingly at Harry.

"Please, believe me, Harry," Sirius said. "I would have died before I betrayed Lily and James."

Vesper watched as Harry slowly nodded his head. Her smile was huge. "Harry-"

"NO!"

Pettigrew collapsed to his knees and shuffled towards Remus.

"Remus, please! It's me…your friend Peter!"

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort," said Remus coldly.

Pettigrew's lips began to quiver. "I-I didn't mean to-the Dark Lord…he has powers you couldn't imagine! He would have killed me! What would you have done? What would you have done?"

"We would have died!" roared Sirius. "We would have died for them, the same we would've done for you…but not this time."

Sirius brandished Snape's wand and aimed it at Pettigrew.

"NO!"

Harry and Vesper looked at each other, surprised at their unintentional harmony.

"Harry, Vesper," Remus said slowly. "This man is the reason the two of you have never known your parents. He sold out both your families to save his own skin, he said so himself."

"He's of no value to us if you kill him now," said Vesper. "If he dies now, the truth dies with him."

"He can go to Azkaban," said Harry. "He can be handed over to the Dementors, but…don't kill him."

"Oh, Harry," Pettigrew cried, crawling towards Harry. "Thank you! It's more than I deserve-thank you-"

"Get off!" Harry said, disgusted. "I'm not doing this for you. I just…I don't think my father would've wanted his two best friends to become murderers, just for the likes of you."

"Very well, Harry," said Remus. "I'll bind him, and then we will head up to the castle."

"But if you make any move," Sirius growled at Pettigrew, "we _will_ kill you. Do you two agree?"

Vesper and Harry nodded.

"Alright then," said Remus. "Ron, we should wait for Madam Pomfrey to properly heal your leg, but until then…"

He muttered a spell, and bandages wrapped themselves tightly around Ron's injured leg.

"Thanks," said Ron.

"What about Professor Snape?" asked Hermione.

Remus checked Snape's pulse. "He's still out cold, but otherwise fine, I think. Perhaps it would be best if he wasn't revived until we get to the castle? We can carry him like this."

Remus cast another spell that caused Snape to hover a few feet above the ground, his head tilted backwards at an uncomfortable looking angle. Vesper's mind didn't linger too long on it though.

"Maybe two of us should be chained to this," Sirius said, jerking his head in Pettigrew's direction. "Just in case."

"I'll do it," Remus volunteered.

"Me too," said Ron, limping forward.

Sirius conjured large shackles, fastened them to Pettigrew and then to Ron and Remus. Ron was looking at a crying Pettigrew with disgust, the true identity of Scabbers seeming an insult to him.

Vesper couldn't believe that she was actually walking out of here alive. Never when she had been crawling through the tunnel the first time, did she think that they would come out of this unharmed. She smiled. To think, that the small hope for good in her father (which had slowly been dimming as the year went on) would actually be founded! The immense amount of joy in her small thirteen-year-old body made her want to sing from the tallest tower in Hogwarts!

Her father was innocent, and Vesper would be damned if anyone tried to stop her from proving it.

**AN-Soooooooo? Did you like it? I know most of the chapter was dialogue and advancement in the plot, but WE ARE NEARING THE END! Only a few more chapters left!**

**Thank you everyone for your wonderful support of me and this story! As always, I will try my hardest to get the next chapter out asap.**

**Remember, 5 reviews! **

**Love Lora**


	18. Chapter 18 When it all Falls Apart

Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 18 When it all Falls Apart**

Their procession through the cave was strange to say the least. Crookshanks, who had been idly sitting on the bed the entire time, had decided to take the lead. Remus, Ron, and Pettigrew were next, shuffling sideways to fit through the tunnel leading back to the school grounds. The unconscious Snape followed with Sirius controlling his floating body…poorly. Vesper, Harry, and Hermione came last.

The walk through the tunnel was mostly silent. The only sounds were Pettigrew's whimpering and everyone else's panting. Finally, they exited, the Whomping Willow unmoving. They stopped at the base for a quick rest (the tunnel really was tiring when adrenaline wasn't pushing you forward). Vesper flopped onto the grass next to Harry. She watched her father walk a little ways away from the rest of the group. He looked in the direction of the castle, the light from the windows in the Great Hall outlining his figure.

Vesper glanced sideways at Harry and noticed that he was watching Sirius too. She nudged him with her shoulder. "Go," she said. "I think he wants to talk with you."

"Are you sure?" asked Harry.

Vesper nodded. Harry hesitated a moment longer before he pushed off the ground and walked over to his godfather. Vesper lay back in the grass and stared up at the night sky. Clouds covered most of the sky, but some small patches of the star-speckled night managed to shine through. She smiled at the sight. Everything was coming together so perfectly. Vesper sat back up a little to peek at Harry and her father; her dad had his hand on Harry's shoulder. She frowned a little. She hated the idea of having to 'share' time with her father with Harry, but Vesper knew that she was being stupid. Harry had grown up with no one in his life to love him as only a parent can, at least she had Remus. And Harry seemed so happy now…it would definitely be worth spending less time with her dad to see Harry smile like he was. She lay back down to stare at the sky. And then-

The clouds rearranged, and a bright beam of light pooled around them.

Vesper quickly pushed herself up from the ground. "No," she whispered in horror.

Remus had gone rigid, and then he started to shake violently. The distinct sound of breaking bones permeated the air, making an almost continuous snapping sound. Remus collapsed, his elongating face in his claw-like hands. His screams were horrendous.

"Go!" shouted Sirius, running back to them. "Run! Now! I'll take care of this. GO!"

Sirius disappeared, transforming into his Animagus form. He bounded forward, and grabbed the now fully transformed werewolf by the neck, pulling it away from Ron and Pettigrew. Vesper watched as her father and godfather snarled, bit, and clawed at each other.

Hermione's scream pulled Vesper's attention away from the battle. Pettigrew had dived for Remus' fallen wand.

"Don't move!" Vesper said reaching for her wand, but the words had barely left her mouth when there was a bright flash of light. She shielded her eyes, the light blinding her in the dark night. Eyes readjusting, Vesper saw that Pettigrew had transformed and escaped.

Vesper turned to check on the fight, but saw that the two fighting canines were nowhere to be seen.

"Where'd they go?" she asked.

Harry answered her. "Lupin ran off into the woods, and Sirius was headed towards the lake, I think."

"Maybe we should go and tell someone from the castle what's happened," said Hermione. "Ron needs-"

But a loud whine coming from the direction of the lake cut Hermione off. It sounded like a dog in pain…

"Sirius," whispered Harry, turning his head in the direction of the sound. "We have to help him!"

He set off at a run, Vesper following close behind him. It wasn't long before they reached the shore of the lake. Sirius was lying on his back, still as death.

Vesper rushed to his side. "Dad, please," she cried. "Wake up!"

He let out a shuddering breath, and then a bloodcurdling cry. Vesper looked skyward. What looked to be a hundred Dementors had found their way to the lake and were descending upon them. Cold began to envelop the air, goose-pimples arising on Vesper's skin even on such a warm summer night. The familiar feeling of depression and loneliness began to weigh down on her chest. It forced her down, down onto the ground.

She vaguely heard Harry telling Hermione how to cast the Patronus Charm, but what did it matter? Nothing mattered except the crushing weight of her emotions threatening to drown her, consume her…

The flickering white light of Harry's fleeting Patronus caught her attention for just a moment, but it was enough. Some small part of her registered the gravity of the situation; if she didn't pull herself together, her father would surely die. Mustering all her strength, Vesper pushed away her negative feelings long enough to think one happy thought-

_Dad's innocent. I was right. HE'S INNOCENT!_

"_Expecto Patronum!_" she called, pulling herself up from the dirt. She nearly lost concentration as a fine silver mist came forth from her wand.

_We'll be fine. Everything will be okay._

"_Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum!_" _He's innocent!_

But the weight was bearing down again. Her feeble Patronus wasn't strong enough to fend off all the Dementors…

"_Expecto patronum! Expect-_"

Vesper collapsed once again on to the ground. Even without the Dementors feeding her negative feelings, she still would have felt helpless. Tears formed in Vesper's eyes; they were going to die out here, after she had just gotten her father back.

A swirling black cloak floated into her direct line of vision. Vesper looked up to see a Dementor slowly gliding towards her.

A small sob escaped her lips. "Please," Vesper begged. "Please…he's innocent!"

It paused, and seemed to regard her curiously as if wondering why this girl should protect a criminal. However, it didn't pause but just for a moment before the Dementor began gliding towards her once again, its scabby hands reaching for the hood of its cloak and lowered it. Where eyes should have been was nothing but scabs patched over the eye sockets. The mouth was nothing but a black hole, sucking in air with a rattling sound that signified a fate worse than death.

Boney hands wound around Vesper's neck. She grabbed at them trying to pull herself free, but they were much stronger than they appeared. They were lifting her up, up off the ground. She could feel the Dementor's shuddering breath as it pulled her face closer. Vesper looked around trying to see if Harry had noticed her predicament, but she only saw Harry in a similar state to her own. The Dementors were getting rid of them first. Its shuddering breath would be the last thing she ever heard-

But then, there was a great light growing brighter by the second. Vesper felt the hands around her neck pulling away and she dropped back to the ground. Too weak to pick herself up, Vesper rolled onto her side and forced herself to focus of the light. It was easier to, though; the Dementors were retreating. Something was causing them to leave…

There were animals, two of them, running across the lake…Vesper tried to fight back fatigue…The animals stopped at the opposite shore of the lake, lighting up two figures…a man and a woman…

Exhaustion won over then. Vesper slumped into the ground, and knew no more.

"Shocking business…shocking…miracle none of them were killed…it was lucky you were there, Snape…"

"Thank you, Minister."

"Nasty cut you've got there…the work of Black, I suppose?"

"The young one as it was, along with Potter, Weasley, and Granger, Minister."

"No!"

"I could tell immediately that Black had bewitched them with a Confundus Charm most likely. They seemed to think there was a possibility he was innocent. However, their interference might have allowed Black to escape…They obviously thought they were going to catch Black themselves. They've gotten away with much more than they should have over their few short years here-"

Vesper bit her tongue to keep a snort from escaping. She had been awake all of two minutes and already Snape had infuriated her. The first thing she had heard after gaining consciousness him lying through his yellow teeth.

"…and of course Potter has always been given extra license from the headmaster-"

"Now, Snape, this is Harry Potter we're talking about…we've all got a bit of a blind spot where he's concerned."

"Personally I try to treat him like any other student-" Vesper rolled her eyes underneath her closed eyelids, "Any other student would be suspended in the least for breaking so many protection measures specifically made for them."

"Well, well…we shall see, Snape…The boy has been foolish."

I would also check Miss Black, Minister. I have reason to believe that she has been working to help him enter the castle…"

Her eyes flashed open. That b-

"The thought has crossed my mind," sighed Fudge, "but one must be careful with such accusations. After the chamber fiasco last year…took everything we had to keep her from saying anything…The Ministry can't afford another miscalculation like last year."

"Understandable Minister," Snape said stiffly. Vesper could imagine him fuming inside at his idea being dismissed.

"What amazes me most is the behavior of the Dementors. You've no idea what made them retreat?"

"No, they were already returning to their posts when I reached them."

Vesper tuned them out and observed her surroundings. She was laying on a bed in the Hospital Wing; the doors leading to the corridor were open, the voices of Snape and Fudge drifting in. Glancing to her left, she saw nothing but an empty bed. On her right was a mop of black hair-Harry-and just beyond his bed she could see a small portion of Hermione.

"Ah, you're awake!"

Vesper jumped at the sudden noise of Madam Pomfrey's talking. She was carrying what appeared to be a boulder size hunk of chocolate. She began chipping away at it with a large hammer.

"How's Ron?" asked Harry.

"He'll be just fine, a broken leg is all," Madam Pomfrey said. "You three however…you will be staying here until I'm satisfied you're-What do you two think you are doing?"

"We need to see the headmaster," Harry said, putting on his glasses.

"Immediately," Vesper added, already throwing the blankets off of her.

"Now, now," said Madam Pomfrey, "it's all right. Black has been locked away, and the Dementor's Kiss will be administered at any moment-"

"WHAT?"

"NO!"

All three of them jumped out of bed, but they hadn't moved a foot before Fudge and Snape came rushing in.

"What's this?" said Fudge. "These children should be in bed. Have they had any chocolate?"

"Minister, listen!" Harry said. "Sirius Black is innocent! Peter Pettigrew faked his own death! We saw him! You can't let them do this to Sirius, he's-"

"Harry, you're very confused, you've all been through a lot this evening, you should all lie back down, we've got everything under control…"

"NO YOU HAVEN'T!" cried Vesper. "YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN!"

"Minister, listen, please," Hermione said, looking imploringly at Fudge. "We all saw him. It was Ron's rat, he's an Animagus, Pettigrew, and-"

"You see, Minister?" said Snape. "Black's done a very good job Confunding them…"

"WE ARE NOT CONFUNDED!" Harry and Vesper roared.

"Minister! Professor!" said Madam Pomfrey angrily. "I must insist that you leave. These are my patients, and they should not be distressed!"

"I am not-"

"If they'd just-"

A large hunk of chocolate was shoved into each of their mouths. Vesper stumbled from the force and staggered, falling into her bed. She noticed that Madam Pomfrey had physically forced Harry back into his bed.

"Now, please, Minister, these children need rest. Please leave-"

The door opened once more. It was Dumbledore. Vesper painfully swallowed the large amount of chocolate in her mouth and jumped back out of bed.

"Professor Dumbledore, he's innocent-"

"For heaven's sake!" said Madam Pomfrey hysterically. "This is a hospital wing! Headmaster, I must insist-"

"I apologize, Poppy, but I need a word with Mr. Potter and Missus Black and Granger," Dumbledore said calmly. "I have just spoken with Sirius Black-"

"I suppose he spewed the same story he planted in Potter's mind?" spat Snape. "Something about a rat, and Pettigrew being alive…"

"That is indeed Black's story," Dumbledore said, regarding Snape carefully.

"And my evidence counts for nothing?" Snape said, outraged. "Peter Pettigrew was not in the Shrieking Shack, nor was there any sign of him on the grounds."

"That was because you were knocked out, Professor," said Hermione earnestly. "You didn't arrive in time to-"

"Miss Granger, HOLD YOUR TONGUE!"

"I would like to speak to Harry, Hermione, and Vesper alone," Dumbledore sharply repeated. "Please, leave us."

Fudge and Madam Pomfrey left as Dumbledore had asked, but Snape remained behind.

"You surely don't believe Black's story?" he whispered.

"I wish to speak with Harry, Hermione, and Vesper alone," repeated Dumbledore.

"Sirius Black showed he was capable of murder at age sixteen. You haven't forgotten that Sirius Black tried to kill _me_, Headmaster?"

"My memory is as good as it ever was, Severus," Dumbledore said quietly.

Snape didn't say anything further. He turned on his heel, and walked out of the room, the door closing with a loud _snap_.

They all started speaking at once.

"Professor, Black's telling the truth!"

"We _saw_ Pettigrew-!"

"-he's a rat-"

"-Pettigrew's front paw, I mean finger-"

"-he cut it off himself-"

Dumbledore raised his hand, and their explanations died on their tongues.

"I beg you to listen to me and not interrupt for there is very little time," he said quietly. "There is no proof to confirm Sirius' story, except your word-and the word of three thirteen-year-old wizards will not convince anybody. A street full of eyewitnesses swore they saw Sirius murder Pettigrew. I even gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius had been the Potter's Secret-Keeper."

"But you believe us?" Vesper asked, almost scared that he would say 'no'.

"Yes, I do," said Dumbledore, "but I am powerless to make others believe. What we need," he said, looking at Hermione, "is more time. You know they law, Miss Granger; you must not be seen. If all goes well, more than one innocent life may be spared."

He turned, and headed for the door. "I'm going to lock you in. It is…" he looked at the clock hanging on the wall, "five minutes 'til midnight. Three turns should do the trick. Remember, _you must not be seen_."

And Dumbledore was gone, the click of the lock echoing in the room.

"What was he on about?" asked Harry. "How can we have more time, they're going to kill Sirius now! And what did he mean 'three turns should do the trick'?"

Vesper smiled. Ever since she had found out that Hermione was using the Time-Turner she had thought once or twice about what it would be like to travel back in time.

"Both of you come here quickly," said Hermione pulling the timepiece from her robes. "Put this around your neck."

It was a tight fit, but all three of them managed to fit inside the chain. Hermione fiddle with the dial spinning it three times as Dumbledore had instructed.

And then, they were gone in a whirl of color and sound.

**AN-Wow, has it really been a month? Sorry but there was a bout of writer's block going around.**

**Only two more chapters left there we're done here. And to quell your fears, yes, there will be more adventures with Vesper to come. I'll give more information on the sequels/prequels after the last chapter so stay tuned.**

**5 reviews for the next chapter. Hopefully I won't take a huge amount of time.**

**Love Lora**


	19. Chapter 19 Let's Do the TimeWarp

Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 19 Let's Do the TimeWarp**

The Entrance Hall materialized before them, golden sunlight pouring out of the windows. Hermione hastily took the Time Turner off of all of them and stuffed it in her pocket.

"Quickly, in here," she said, pulling Vesper and Harry behind her. Hermione opened the door to a broom closet, and shoved them inside.

"What-how-Hermione, what happened?" sputtered Harry.

"We've gone back in time," Hermione said, matter-of-factly. "Three hours to be precise. Now, hush! I'm trying to listen…I think someone's coming…"

"Us?" guessed Vesper. "Everyone else would be in their common rooms."

"Are you suggesting that we're here _and_ out there too?" Harry asked.

"I think it is," Hermione said, ignoring Harry's question. "It doesn't sound like more than four people…and we're walking slowly because we're under the Invisibility Cloak." Hermione waited a few moments before saying, "I think we've gone down the front steps now."

"This isn't normal…"

"Harry, this is called a Time Turner," Hermione explained. "McGonagall gave it to me at the beginning of term. It's how I've been getting to all my classes; I've been redoing hours. But…I don't understand what Dumbledore wants us to do!"

Vesper rolled her eyes. "Cleverest witch of the age, yeah right. Hermione, Dumbledore obviously sent us back three hours for a specific reason. What were we doing three hours ago?"

"We were going down to Hagrid's three hours ago," said Harry slowly. "Dumbledore said that we could save more than one innocent life…We're going to save Buckbeak!"

"How is that suppose to help us save Sirius?" asked Hermione.

"We'll fly up to Flitwick's office," said Vesper, "then they can escape together."

Hermione shook her head. "If we manage to do all this without being seen, it'll be a miracle!"

"We've got to try, don't we?" said Harry. He walked over to the door and pressed his ear against the door. "Doesn't sound like anyone's there…let's go."

Harry slowly pushed open the door and they filed out of the closet. The Entrance Hall was completely deserted. Silently, they darted to the front door and ran down the steps onto the grounds.

"If anyone's looking out the windows-" Hermione said, looking nervously back at the castle behind them.

"We won't be able to tell if they are," said Vesper. "Besides, they'll never know it was us."

"Maybe we should hide in the forest," said Hermione. "There's a patch of the forest that's close to Hagrid's. We can stay there until it's time."

They changed direction and headed for the very outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. Sprinting through the trees, they reached Hagrid's hut right as Past Harry, Hermione, Vesper, and Ron were entering the home. A small window was open, but the conversation could barely be heard.

"We need to move a bit closer, otherwise we won't know what's happening," said Vesper.

"Fine," said Hermione. "We can stay behind those pumpkins, but _be careful_."

"Hermione," Harry said suddenly. "What if we-we just ran in and grabbed Pettigrew-"

"No!" Hermione shouted in a whisper. "We cannot be seen, Harry! We're already breaking one of the most important wizarding laws! Nobody's supposed to meddle with time, nobody! Awful things happen to wizards who meddle with time, Harry. You could accidentally kill your past or future self."

"Alright," said Harry, putting his hands up in mock surrender. "It was just an idea."

"Shh!" Vesper said. "Look-Dumbledore, the minister, and the executioner are coming!"

"But," Hermione said, looking towards the cabin, "we aren't leaving! Why aren't we leaving?"

Suddenly Hermione grabbed something and flung it into the open window. A loud crash sounded from within.

"What are you doing?" Vesper whispered franticly.

But Hermione was already grabbing another small stone. "I'm trying to get Harry to look out the window!"

"You were trying to hit…You're aim's bloody awful, give me that!"

Vesper quickly stood up and threw the stone with precision.

"Ow!"

"Ow," said the future Harry. "That hurt," he said looking at Vesper.

"We're coming out," said Hermione. "We need to move."

They quickly resumed their position in the trees. Moments later the back door opened, Harry, Ron, Vesper, and Hermione filing out. They watched themselves argue with Hagrid, but eventually they threw the cloak over themselves and left.

There was a knock on Hagrid's front door. The execution party had arrived.

"Where is the beast?" came the cold voice of Macnair.

"Out-outside," croaked Hagrid.

"We-er-have to read the official notice of execution," said Fudge. "I'll make it quick. And then it must be signed, of course."

"Stay here," whispered Harry. "I'll do it."

"_It is the decision of the Committee for the Disposal of dangerous Creatures that the hippogriff Buckbeak, hereafter called the condemned, shall be executed on the sixth of June at sundown-_"

Harry darted out from the trees and approached Buckbeak. He made the customary bow. Buckbeak returned the gesture. Harry hurried to the post where Buckbeak was tied and began fumbling with the knot.

"…_sentenced to death by beheading, to be carried out by the Committee's appointed executioner, Walden Macnair…_"

Harry tugged on the rope, but Buckbeak wouldn't move.

"He's going to get caught," whispered Hermione. "Wait here."

"Wait!" Vesper said as loudly as she dared. "What-" she began, but Hermione had already left.

"…_as witnessed below._ We all need to sign here at the bottom…Hagrid, Macnair, Dumbledore…"

"It's a very long name," Vesper heard Dumbledore joke.

"That's right! Come on, Beaky!"

Hermione reemerged, dead ferrets hanging from her neck. She was closely followed by Harry and an eager Buckbeak, who trotted right after Hermione snapping at one of the ferrets around her neck.

Hagrid's back door opened with a bang. Harry, Hermione, Vesper, and even Buckbeak stood absolutely still.

Silence…then-

"Where is it?" asked Fudge. "I saw the beast not a moment ago."

"How extraordinary," mused Dumbledore.

"We must search the grounds!"

"Search the skies if you will, Minister. However, I could do with a cup of tea, or a large brandy. Hagrid?"

"O' – o' course, Professor."

The three of them listened closely. Nothing could be heard except for the muffled sounds of quiet conversation coming from Hagrid's hut.

"Now what do we do?" asked Harry.

"We stay hidden here," said Hermione. "We need to wait until it's time to save Sirius."

"Shouldn't we get closer to the Whomping Willow?" Vesper asked. "We need to know when we need to save Dad."

Hermione agreed. They moved around the edge of the forest, the last rays of the setting sun lighting their way. They finally stopped when they reached a large clump of trees through which they could see the Whomping Willow.

"There we go!" Harry said suddenly. "We just went into the tunnel…this is _weird_."

For a few minutes nothing happened. Then-

"Here comes Lupin," said Harry, as a dark figure sprinted towards the Whomping Willow. As he came near the tree, Remus grabbed a broken branch and pressed the knot on the trunk with it. The tree stilled, and Remus disappeared.

Barely two minutes later, the castle door flew open yet again, and Snape came charging towards them running for the Willow. He paused, though, bending down to pick something up. Vesper saw that it was the Invisibility Cloak. She glanced at Harry and noticed his fists clenching as he muttered, "Get your filthy hands off it."

Hermione shushed him. "Quiet!" she hissed.

Snape grabbed the branch that Remus had used to freeze the tree, poked the knot, and vanished from their sight.

"Well," said Vesper, "there's nothing to do but wait." She sat down, leaning her back against a tree trunk. "Might as well get comfortable."

Harry and Hermione followed her example. They were quiet for a few minutes before Hermione spoke.

"There's something I don't understand," she said. "Why didn't the Dementors get Sirius? I remember them coming, and then I think I passed out. What happened?"

Vesper and Harry took turns giving her information of what they had seen that night; how the two Patronuses had forced the Dementors to retreat, saving them all.

Hermione asked the golden question. "But who conjured them? They must be really powerful wizards. Did you see what they looked like?"

Vesper shook her head, but was surprised when Harry admitted he saw something.

"I saw them," he said. "I'm pretty sure it was a man and a woman…but I passed out right after…I could've been imagining things…"

"But who do you think it was?" Vesper asked.

"I think," said Harry hesitantly. "I think it was my parents."

Hermione's eyes met Vesper's. "Harry," Hermione said quietly, "your parents are-well-dead."

"I know," said Harry quickly.

"Do you think you saw their ghosts?" Hermione asked.

"No, they looked solid," he said. "Look, I know it sounds crazy, but it's what I saw."

It really was crazy. But then again, who else would defend three children and not turn in a criminal? Vesper had no idea. Pettigrew's reappearance proved that someone believed to be dead could really still be alive. But Pettigrew was a traitor hiding from nearly everyone; James and Lily Potter had no reason to be in hiding for twelve long years.

They talked no more of who the mysterious casters might be. It was nearly an hour later that something happened.

"Here we come!" said Vesper.

She, Harry, and Hermione got to their feet. They saw Remus, Ron, and Pettigrew climb awkwardly out from the base of the tree. Then came Hermione, followed by the unconscious Snape. Next came Harry, Vesper, and Sirius. They all paused and stopped a short distance away from the Whomping Willow.

Vesper shifted her weight nervously onto her other foot. The full moon would appear at any moment…

"Vesper?"

She turned to the voice calling her. Harry looked about as anxious as she felt.

"Do you see me talking over there to Siri-er, your dad?" he asked.

She looked over where he meant and nodded.

"Well he mentioned me staying with you and him if that was okay with you, and I understand if you don't want me there since he's your dad and all, and I-"

"I would _love_," Vesper said, grabbing his hand, "if you stayed with us, Harry. Really. "

Harry's entire face lit up. Vesper tried to ignore the fluttering in her stomach. She just blamed it on being nervous for what they were about to do.

A loud howl of pain startled her. She pulled her hand away from Harry's in sudden revelation. The noise had jolted something in her brain; she was so stupid!

"We need to move, now!" shouted Vesper. "Remus is going to run into the forest right at us!"

Hermione gasped.

"But where are we going to go?" said Hermione, dashing to untie Buckbeak from a nearby tree. "The Dementors will be coming any moment."

"Back to Hagrid's," Harry said.

"If he's not gone-"

"-we can hide outside the house," Harry cut in. "Come on!"

They ran as fast as they could, Buckbeak trotting along behind them. They could hear a werewolf's howl behind them, getting closer…

"Check through the window," said Hermione. "Quickly!"

Harry hurriedly peeked through the uncovered window. "He's gone!"

They rushed to open the door. Once they were all inside Harry bolted the door.

"That," panted Vesper, "was close. Really close."

Hermione nodded, clutching her chest.

"I think I'd better go outside again," said Harry slowly. "I can't see what's going on—we won't know when it's time…"

Hermione eyed Harry suspiciously. "I don't know…"

"I'll keep an eye on him," Vesper said quickly. "Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid to get us all killed."

"I'm not-"

"Fine," said Hermione. "Just be careful."

Harry and Vesper stepped outside and edged around the cabin. Yelping could be heard distantly in the background. The hoard of Dementors would be swooping in at any minute…

Suddenly, Harry took off at a run towards the lake.

"Harry!" she hissed, taking off after him. "What're you doing?"

She was near the bank of the lake, but Harry was nowhere to be seen.

"Ha-"

A hand covered her mouth, and dragged Vesper down to the ground.

Harry pulled her close, moving them both closer to the bush Harry was hiding behind.

Without removing his hand, Harry said, "You would want to see your mother again, wouldn't you; even if there was the slightest possibility?"

Vesper nodded without hesitation. She understood Harry's wanting; if there ever was such a way that she could meet her mother, she would do it in a heartbeat.

He released her mouth, and they both looked to the opposite shore. The feeble wisps of their Patronuses were dying.

"Come on, Dad," muttered Harry. "Mum…"

A sick sense of panic rushed through Vesper. Whoever cast the Patronuses (be it Harry's parents or not) weren't coming.

"We're going to die," she realized in horror. "All of us."

No sooner had the words left her mouth then Vesper was being yanked in a new direction.

"What—?"

"Think of something happy!" said Harry. "On three: one, two-"

Quickly, Vesper closed her eyes and imagined what life would be like once her father was cleared of charges. A decent sized house with a large backyard; playing Quidditch with Harry in the afternoon and her father's memories on his days at Hogwarts over dinner…

"Three!"

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" they yelled.

And out of her wand burst a blindingly white form. A similar light burst from Harry's wand; it nearly resembled a horse when she looked closely. Vesper's was much smaller in size. It looked almost like a small dog except for the long tail sweeping behind it. Silently, the two Patronuses ran across the lake, charging at the Dementors. Working in harmony, they took different directions, encircling the Dementors, driving them away. Soon the air was warm again as they disappeared.

The Patronuses turned, and came back to their casters. Vesper bent down, trying to determine exactly what shape hers had taken. It stared up at her, eyes wide and unblinking, its bushy tail sweeping the surface of the lake. It was a fox.

"_What did you do? _I thought you weren't going to let him do anything stupid!_"_

In an instant the small vixen vanished. Vesper stood back up to see an irate Hermione stalking towards them.

"Actually," said Vesper, "I said that I wouldn't let him do anything stupid to get us all killed. If Harry and I hadn't done what we'd done, we would all be worse than dead right now."

Harry quickly explained how he can to the realization that it wasn't his parents he saw, it was himself and Vesper.

"I can't believe it," Hermione said. "That's incredibly advanced magic. I don't know how—Snape's here."

Quickly, they ducked behind the nearest bush, and waited. After a few minutes Harry peered around the bush, and whispered that the coast was clear.

"Right, it's nearly time," said Hermione as they walked back to Hagrid's hut. "We've got roughly half an hour before Dumbledore locks the door. We have to save Sirius and get back into the hospital wing before anyone notices we're missing without being seen."

"Oh, if that's all…" Vesper muttered to Harry. He just grinned.

Hermione went inside and came back a minute later with a reluctant Buckbeak.

"D' you reckon he's up there yet?" said Harry after a while. He checked his watch. "It's been almost ten minutes."

"Yes, we should go now," Hermione agreed. "Give me a hand-"

Hermione placed her hands on Buckbeak's back and Harry helped her onto the hippogriff. He did the same for Vesper before climbing up in front of them. Harry slung the rope the tied to Buckbeak over the creature's neck and tied it to create makeshift reins.

"Ready?" he asked. "You two better hold on…"

The first jolt as they rose into the air sent Vesper lurching. It was nothing like the smooth riding a broom; every flap of Buckbeak's mighty wings sent them up and down. She quickly tightened her hold and tried not to think about her arms encircling Harry and how very close they both were. She had more important things to be thinking about…like the fact that they were getting ready to pass the thirteenth window past the West Tower-

"Stop!" Vesper cried. Harry instantly pulled back on the reins. Their forward progression halted, but they still bobbed up and down several feet as Buckbeak remained airborne.

"He's there," she said pointing. His back was to them, but the mass of tangled black hair was a dead giveaway. Harry leaned over and tapped loudly on the window.

Sirius turned around. He hurried to the window and tried to open it, but it was locked.

Hermione grabbed her wand. "Stand back!" she called out.

"_Alohomora!"_

The window sprang open.

Sirius began clambering out the window. "How-" he started pulling himself behind Hermione.

"Not here," Harry said. "We don't have much time-the Dementors are coming."

As soon as he was situated they were in flight once more. Harry guided Buckbeak to land in the front courtyard of the castle. As soon as Buckbeak touched down on the ground, all four of them slid off the beast. Sirius was quick to grab Harry and Vesper into a bone-crushing hug.

"You don't know how proud I am of you; the both of you," Sirius said, emotion leaking through his gruff voice. He reluctantly released them. "We'll be together as a family someday," he promised Harry. "But for right now you're safer here. Besides, I'm only an owl away."

He turned to directly face Vesper. "You've become such a lovely young lady. I wish that I had been there to see you grow up, but Remus has done well by you." Sirius ruffled her hair before pulling her into another hug. "Take care of yourself, Star, and try not to get into so much trouble."

"No promises," said Vesper, smirking. "I love you, Dad."

"I love you too, Vesper."

Sirius let go and pulled himself onto Buckbeak. He squeezed Buckbeak's sides with his feet…they were rising into the sky…their shape became smaller and smaller as Vesper watched…then they were gone.

**A.N-Ok sorry for the late-ish update but exams, dying relatives, and dance recitals will put writing on hold.**

**In other news, only one more chapter to go. With that chapter I will also post my plans for how I am going to continue with Vesper**

**Fanfiction is being stupid with updates but if you would leave a review that would be great! I would love to break 100.**

**Love Lora**


	20. Chapter 20 Goodbye for Now

****See AN for news about the SEQUELS!****

**Disclaimer-I don't own anything but Vesper. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.**

**Chapter 20 Goodbye for Now**

"Come on!"

Hermione's voice pulled Vesper out of a reverie-like state. "We only have a few minutes left before Dumbledore locks the door!"

"Right," Harry said reluctantly. "Let's go…"

They quickly slipped through the front door and ran across the Entrance Hall to a staircase that led to the hospital wing. When they reached it, voices could be heard drifting downwards. They flattened themselves along the wall.

"…hope Dumbledore won't make this difficult. It will be done immediately then?" Snape.

"As soon as the dementors arrive. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to this." Fudge. "The whole affair's been highly embarrassing for the Ministry, and I can breathe a sigh of relief now that it's finally over."

Their voices gradually faded and their footsteps grew quieter. Silently, Harry, Hermione, and Vesper darted up the stairs.

Harry peered around the corner. "They're gone," he whispered.

"Good," Hermione said, checking her watch. She let out a low moan. "We only have two minutes left!"

"Hermione," Vesper hedged, "What exactly would happen if we didn't make it back in time?"

"Nothing good I would imagine; now let's _go_!"

Down the corridor, turn right, up another staircase, and left down a second corridor, and there it was: the entrance to the hospital wing.

"Listen, that's Dumbledore talking," said Hermione as they neared the entrance.

Suddenly, the door swung open as Dumbledore backed out of the room. He turned around and didn't seem the least bit surprised to see them standing there.

"I trust everything went according to plan?" he asked quietly.

Harry nodded. "Sirius is gone, on Buckbeak…"

Dumbledore beamed. "Well done. Now-" He peeked through the door. "I believe you've gone. Get inside; I'll lock you in…"

Vesper, Harry, and Hermione slipped back into the wing none too soon. As soon as the click of the lock had sounded, Madam Pomfrey came striding out from her office.

"Will the headmaster now allow me to care for my patients?"

Vesper thought it best to just get into her bed without saying anything. She took the chocolate given to her by the matron, and waited for something to happen for surely, something _would_ happen.

And happen it did.

It started with a distant cry of rage from somewhere above them. Then there were voices, angry voices, getting louder and louder, closer and closer.

"He must have Disapparated, Severus. We should have had someone stand guard in the room with him."

"HE DIDN'T DISAPPARATE! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO APPARATE OR DISAPPARATE INSIDE HOGWARTS! THIS – HAS – TO – DO – WITH – _POTTER_!"

Vesper turned to Harry. "Why does he think it was just you?" she whispered.

"Now Snape be reasonable! Harry's been locked up – all of them have!"

BAM.

The door of the hospital wing burst open. Fudge, Snape, and Dumbledore came striding into the wing. Dumbledore alone had a pleasant expression on his face. Fudge's face was red and angry. Snape's face was twisted with so much rage that it was nearly comical. Vesper raised her chuck of chocolate to cover her mouth.

"OUT WITH IT, POTTER!" Snape bellowed. "WHAT DID YOU DO?"

"Professor Snape!" cried Madam Pomfrey. "Please control yourself!"

"Really, Snape," said Fudge, "Harry, Miss Granger, and Miss Black –"

"BLACK!"

Snape turned his rage on her. "As sneaky and slippery as your father, YOU DID SOMETHING!"

"See here, Snape," Fudge barked. "You're talking nonsense!"

"THEY HELPED HIM ESCAPE, I KNOW IT!"

"That will do, Severus," said Dumbledore firmly. "Think about what you are saying. This ward has been locked since I left it. Madam Pomfrey, have these students left their beds since I have been gone?"

"Of course not!" scoffed the matron. "I would have heard them!"

"Well, there it is," said Dumbledore with a tone of finality. "Unless you are suggesting, Severus, that Harry, Hermione, and Vesper can be in two places at once, I'm afraid there isn't any point in troubling them further."

Snape stood there for a moment giving Harry, Vesper, and Hermione one last glare before whirling around, and stormed out of the room.

Dumbledore and Fudge didn't dawdle in the ward. They left for Dumbledore's office, Fudge muttering something about 'that unstable man'.

A low moan sounded from the other end of the ward. Ron was awake. He sat up, rubbed his head, and looked over at them.

"What – what happened?" he groaned. "Why are we here? Where's Sirius and Lupin? Harry?"

Harry looked from Vesper to Hermione. "You explain," he said, reaching for another piece of chocolate.

Vesper and Hermione glanced over at each other, shrugged their shoulders, and began their tale.

The next morning Madam Pomfrey declared them fit and let them leave midway through breakfast. When they arrived at the Great Hall it was nearly empty. The end of exams and the nice weather meant a perfect last Hogsmeade visit before summer holiday. They were just making plans to spend the day down by the lake when a school owl swooped down, and landed in front of Vesper. She quickly untied the note.

"Who's it from?" Ron asked.

"It's from Remus," said Vesper, her eyes scanning the parchment.

_Vesper,_

_Please come see me in my office. There are some things we need to talk about._

_Remus_

She stuffed the note into her pocket. "Looks like I won't be joining you." Vesper stood. "I'll see you all later then."

The walk to Remus' office seemed to take longer than usual even with the empty corridors. What could he possibly have to talk about? Vesper snorted; that was a stupid question. The fact that she had finally met her father last night and realized he was innocent of all crimes was no reason for her godfather to be concerned. He didn't even know what happened after that!

She didn't bother to knock upon reaching the office; instead she chose to quietly slip through the open door before closing it.

Remus' office was in a state of organized chaos. Large piles of books were strewn about the floor while a large packing trunk lay open with robes hung over the side. Remus was hunched over his desk organizing a mass of papers.

"Term doesn't end for weeks," said Vesper from the doorway. "Why are you packing already?"

She heard Remus sigh. "Vesper, what happened last night was unacceptable. I put you in extreme danger –"

"It was a onetime thing."

Remus shook his head, not looking up from his papers. "I could have killed you and your friends…or worse."

"It was an accident. And I'm fine!"

"You're too young to understand –"

"What I don't _understand_ is why you're so upset!"

"If the Ministry gets involved –"

"They won't! This is Hogwarts' business. There's nothing the Ministry can do –"

"THEY COULD TAKE YOU AWAY FROM ME!"

Vesper jumped at his sudden outburst. Remus straightened, and ran his fingers through his graying hair. "They could take you away from me," he repeated softly. "It took six years of tests, arguments, and begging for me to be allowed custody of you. I can't…" He trailed off, and Vesper had never seen him so broken. Slowly, she walked around the desk to where he was standing. She wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"I'm not going anywhere," she said. "Not even if the Minister of Magic shows up on our doorstep himself."

The rest of the morning was spent organizing and packing. Remus and Vesper stopped when lunch came around, and took turns reminiscing about the early days when she had first come to stay with Remus.

They were in the midst of laughter when the door opened. Vesper turned to see Harry. Remus stood up at Harry's entrance.

"Ah, Harry," he said. "I was expecting you."

"I just saw Hagrid," said Harry. "He said you were resigning. You're not, are you?"

"I am," Remus said simply. "Professor Dumbledore managed to convince the Minister that I was trying to save your lives. Unfortunately for Professor Snape, that was the last straw. He – er – _accidentally_ let slip that I am a werewolf earlier this morning before you had left the hospital wing."

"This is Snape's doing?" An outraged Vesper stood from her seat. "Is that why you're really leaving?"

Remus smiled gently at her. "The backlash will be awful. Parents will not a werewolf teaching their children. And if there are complaints made to the Ministry…well…" he trailed off, giving Vesper a knowing look.

"But you're the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had!" said Harry. "Don't go!"

Remus sighed. "Vesper," he said, "would you please go out into the classroom? I have some things in there that need to be packed still."

She got the hint. Stepping out of the office, Vesper gently closed the door, and gazed at the classroom. When Remus had first told her that he would be teaching at Hogwarts, she didn't like the idea. The very thought of being taught by the man who had raised her like a father had not appealed to Vesper to say the least. But she had gradually grown to love Remus' constant presence in her life, whether it was during class or just seeing him at the teachers' table during mealtimes…

It was all Snape's fault! If he wasn't so hung up on past grudges, then maybe Pettigrew could've been caught. And if Pettigrew had been caught, then –

"What has you scowling so, Miss Black?"

Vesper whipped around. Professor Dumbledore was standing just a few feet from her.

When she didn't answer, he continued. "Might it be safe to assume that it has something to do with the events of last night?"

"I just wish that there was more that I could've done," said Vesper.

"You accomplished a great deal, Vesper," Dumbledore countered. "Not only did you uncover an unknown truth, but you also saved your father's life, and produced magic far beyond average for a normal third year. You should be very proud of yourself, Vesper; your father was."

With that, Dumbledore left her, heading for the stairs that led to Remus' office. It wasn't long before Dumbledore came back out followed by Remus and Harry.

Remus stopped where she stood. "I'll see you soon," he said simply. He ruffled the top of her head and gave Vesper a warm smile before walking out the door.

"I still can't believe you never told us about the Time-Turner."

"It was a secret, Ron. I wasn't supposed to tell _anyone_."

"But we're your _friends_!"

"That's not an excuse!"

Vesper looked up from the book she was reading and smiled, happy that Ron and Hermione had finally made up for good…for now, anyway.

She turned to her other best friend. "Cheer up, Harry," she said. "The holidays won't be so bad."

"Yeah," Ron interjected. "The Quidditch World Cup is this summer! How about it, Harry? Come and stay, and we'll go see it. Dad can usually score extra tickets since he works at the Ministry."

Harry seemed to brighten exceptionally at the idea. The rest of the afternoon was spent playing games of Exploding Snap. They were almost at the station, when Hermione said, "What's that thing outside the window?"

They all turned to look. A small grey owl was struggling to keep up with the fast moving train; the wind throwing it this way and that. Harry quickly opened the window to let the tiny owl in. It zoomed inside, and dropped a letter on both Harry and Vesper's laps before whizzing around the top of the compartment.

Vesper unfolded the small note and began to read.

_Vesper,_

_I would like to say how proud I am of you, not only for what you did that night, but I am also proud of the person you have become. Thank Remus for that, will you? I wish I could've been the one to raise you, but Remus is a good second choice._

_I'm in hiding right now, but I will write as often as I can. I hope we will meet again soon._

_If you ever need me, send word and I'll be there._

_Goodbye for now,_

_Dad_

Vesper couldn't stop smiling the rest of the journey.

**AN-Wow. I can't believe that I'm finally done. Thank you to everyone who reviewed/favorite/alerted this story. You guys are the best.**

**As for the sequels, I will be going ****backwards**** and doing books 1 and 2 since those contain important background information.**

**ALSO! I will be doing something different with my updating. I will be writing MOST OF THE STORY BEFORE PUBLISHING IT! That way I can get update out faster on a legit schedule.**

**So please add an author alert for me, and I'll see you in a few months!**

**Love Lora**


	21. Sequelprequel thing!

Holy cow it's been a while but good news!

The sequel/prequel entitled Vesper Black and the Philosopher's Stone is now up!

I have a few chapters written already (which is why it took me so long) so update will be regular (for a while at least).

So go check it out!


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